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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

:ed states geological survey 

GEORGE OTIS SMITH, DIRECTOR 

Water-supply Paper 363 



QUALITY OF THE SURFACE WATERS 

OF OREGON 



BY 



WALTON VAN" WINKLE 



Prepared in cooperation with 

THE STATE OF OREGON 

John H. Lewis State Engineer 




Monograph 



WASHINGTON 

GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 
1914 




Class ( •> r> I "2. 7^, 
Bonk .^7^ 



Digitized by the Internet Archive 
in 2011 with funding from 
The Library of Congress 



http://www.archive.org/details/qualityofsurfaceOOvanw 



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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 
UNITED STATES GEOLOGICAL SUKVEY 

GEORGE OTIS SMITH, DIRECTOR 



Water- Supply Paper 363 



3 



QUALITY OF THE SURFACE WATERS 

OF OREGON 



BY 



WALTON VAN WINKLE 



Prepared in cooperation with 

THE STATE OF OREGON 

John H. Lewis, State Engineer 




WASHINGTON 

GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 
1914 







0. GF D. 
CCT 3 1814 






CONTENTS. 



Page. 

Outline of investigation 7 

Previous work 8 

Value of information regarding the quality of surface waters 9 

Acknowledgments 9 

Natural features of Oregon 10 

Topography 10 

Hydrography 11 

Rivers 11 

Lakes 11 

Swamps 13 

Floods 13 

Geology 13 

Rocks. 13 

Soils 15 

Climate , 16 

Economic features 16 

Population 16 

Agriculture 17 

Lumbering and manufacturing 17 

Constituents of natural waters 18 

Water for domestic use 19 

Water for boilers 19 

Corrosion 19 

Formation of scale 20 

Foaming 22 

Water for use in factories 22 

Industries chiefly affected 22 

Breweries 22 

Paper mills 23 

Wool-scouring, bleaching, and dyeing works 24 

Laundries 24 

Tanneries 25 

Slaughterhouses 25 

Purification of water , 25 

Slow sand filtration 25 

R,apid sand filtration 26 

Sterilization 28 

Softening 29 

Methods of analysis 30 

River water 30 

Highly mineralized waters 32 

Interpretation of the results of analysis 34 

Industrial interpretation 34 

Geochemical interpretation 36 

3 



4 CONTENTS. 

Page. 

.San Francisco Bay drainage basin 38 

Goose Lake 38 

General features 38 

Character of the water 38 

North Pacific coast drainage basins 39 

Klamath River 39 

General features 39 

Character of the water 40 

Crater Lake 42 

General features 42 

Character of the water 42 

Rogue River 43 

General features 43 

Character of the water 44 

L'mpqua River 46 

General features 46 

Character of the water 46 

Siletz River 48 

General features 48 

Character of the water 49 

Columbia River drainage basin 51 

General features 51 

Snake River 52 

General features • 52 

Character of the water 53 

Owyhee River 55 

General features 55 

Character of the water 55 

Malheur River 57 

General features 57 

Character of the water 57 

Powder River 58 

General features 58 

( 'haracter of the water 59 

Grande Ronde River 61 

General features 61 

Character of the water 61 

Wallowa River 63 

General features 63 

Character of the water 63 

Umatilla River 66 

General features 66 

Character of the water 66 

John Day River 71 

General features 71 

Character of the water 71 

Deschutes River - - 74 

General features 74 

Character of the water 75 

Crooked River 78 

General feat ures 78 

Character of the water 79 

White River 81 



CONTENTS. 5 

North Pacific coast drainage basins— Continued. 

Columbia River drainage basin — Continued. page. 

Sandy River 82 

General features 82 

Character of the water 82 

Bull Run River 85 

General features 85 

Character of the water 85 

Willamette River 87 

General features 87 

Character of the water 88 

McKenzie River 91 

General features 91 

Character of the water 91 

Santiam River 93 

General features 93 

Character of the water 93 

Breitenbush Hot Springs 93 

Clackamas River 95 

General features 95 

Character of the water 97 

Columbia River at Cascade Locks ■ 97 

General features 97 

Character of the water 97 

The Great Basin 103 

Outline of geologic history 103 

Harney Basin 104 

General features 104 

Character of the water 105 

Donner und Blitzen River 107 

General features 107 

Character of the water 107 

Silvies River 107 

General features : 107 

Character of the water 109 

Warner Lake Basin 109 

General features 109 

Outlet of Quaternary Lake Warner 110 

Salt deposits in the basin 112 

Character of the water 113 

Alkali Lake Basin 114 

Christmas Lake Basin - 115 

General features. 115 

Character of the water 116 

Chewaucan Basin 117 

General features .' 117 

Character of the water H9 

General characteristics of the surface waters 123 

Conditions influencing quality 123 

Average chemical composition 124 

Geochemical character 127 

Denudation 128 

Industrial value 130 

Value for irrigation 131 

Summary 132 

Index 133 



ILLUSTRATIONS. 

Page. 

Plate I. Map of Oregon showing location of sampling stations 

II. A, Large spring in Pelican Bay, Upper Klamath Lake; B, Water- 
gouged sections and beach shown on profile of rock near Fort Rock . 40 
Figure 1. Diagram showing relative content of suspended and dissolved 

matter in Oregon River waters 125 



GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 



WATER-SUPPLY PAPER 363 PLATE I 




• Sampling station 



MAP OF OREGON SHOWING LOCATION OF SAMPLING STATIONS. 



U- S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 



ATER-SUPPLY PAPER 363 PLATE I 



I2<r 



117 c 



116 c 




124 r - 



123 c 



117' 



Sampling station 



QUALITY OF THE SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 



By Walton Van Winkle. 



OUTLINE OF INVESTIGATION. 

On July 1, 1911, the Director of the United States Geological Sur- 
vey made a contract with the State engineer of Oregon for the purpose 
of maintaining ' ' in the State of Oregon a cooperative survey to 
determine the chemical composition of the waters of said State dur- 
ing a period of 14 months from the date 7 ' thereof. The further 
provision that the work should be carried on by a member of the 
United States Geological Survey led to the assignment of the author, 
an assistant chemist in the Survey, to the investigation. 

In August, 1911, 23 sampling stations were established, all but two 
of which (Willamette River at Salem and Columbia River at Cascade 
Locks) were at places occupied by the Survey as stream-gaging sta- 
tions. The location of the stations is shown by the following list 
and indicated by symbol on the map (PL I) : 

Rogue River Dear Tolo; below power plant at Gold Ray. 

Umpqua River near Elkton; at ferry. 

Siletz River at Siletz; one-half mile above bridge. 

Owyhee River at Owyhee; 3 miles above mouth. 

Powder River near North Powder; 7 miles east of North Powder. 

Grande Ronde River at Elgin; at bridge on county road. 

Wallowa River at Minam. 

Snake River at Weiser, Idaho; at power house. 

Umatilla River near Gibbon; 1 mile below town. 

Umatilla River near Umatilla; 1| miles above town. 

John Day River near Dayville; at MacRae's ranch. 

John Day River at McDonald; at ferry. 

Crooked River near Prineville; at Stearns's ranch. 

Deschutes River at Bend; at pumping plant. 

Deschutes River near Moody; 1£ miles above mouth. 

Bull Rim River near Bull Run; just above Portland waterworks intake. 

Sandy River at Brightwood; above and below Salmon River. 

McKenzie River near Springfield; at Hendricks Ferry. 

Santiam River at Mehama. 

Clackamas River near Cazadero; at power house. 

Willamette River at Salem; at county bridge. 

Columbia River at Cascade Locks; just below the locks. 

Chewaucan River near Paisley; one-fourth mile above town. 

At each of these places samples of water were collected daily from 
the stream and forwarded to the laboratory at Willamette Univer- 

7 



8 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

sity, Salem, where all analyses were made. Collection of samples 
was begun in August, 1911, and was continued without interruption 
until August 15, 1912, with some minor exceptions, as follows: In 
August, 1911, the station at Gibbon was moved to Yoakum, 1^ 
miles east of the railway station, and that at Minam was moved to 
the gaging station at Joseph, below the outlet of Wallowa Lake. In 
October, 1911, a station was established on Silvies River, 4 miles 
from Burns. The station on Santiam River at Mehama was discon- 
tinued December 18, 1911. 

All stations were visited at least once either by the author or by 
an engineer from the district office of the Geological Survey at 
Portland, and in August, 1912, the author made a rapid inspection 
trip through central and south-central Oregon, in course of which 
he collected samples from the following sources : 

Crooked River near Paulina; at wagon bridge, 5 miles from Paulina. 

Donner und Blitzen Canal near Narrows; at lowest wagon bridge. 

Donner imd Blitzen River at P Ranch; at bridge near ranch house. 

Pelican Bay, Klamath Lake; spriug in middle of arm of bay at Uarriman Lodge. 

Wood River above Fort Klamath; at wagon bridge on Crater Lake road. 

Samples of water from the following lakes were also collected by 
interested parties and were analyzed in connection with the 
investigation. 

Abert Lake. Hart Lake. 

Bluejoint Lake. Malheur Lake. 

Crater Lake. Pelican Lake. 

Crump Lake. Silver Lake (Harney County). 

Flagstaff Lake. Silver Lake (Lake County ). 

Goose Lake. Summer Lake. 

Harney Lake. 

The analyses were made by the author, assisted by X. M. Fink- 
biner and, during July, August, and September, 1912, by Florian 
Von Eschen, of Willamette University. 

PREVIOUS WORK. 

No systematic study of the quality of surface waters of Oregon has 
heretofore been made. A few analyses of lake waters have been 
published. Analyses of water from Columbia and Willamette rivers 
were reported by Bradley 1 in 1910, and a partial analysis of the water 
of Bull Run River was published by the water board of the city of 
Portland in its pamphlet relating to rates and regulations. Analyses 
of the water of Powder River near Baker City and near North Powder 
have been published in the Field Operations of the Bureau of Soils, 
1903, 5th report, page 11G2, Department of Agriculture. An analy- 
sis of the water of Lost River is given in the Annual Report of Irri- 

i Bradley, (\ E., The water of the Columbia and Willamette rivers: Jour. Indus, and Eng. Chemistry, 
vol. 2, pp. 293-294, 1910. 



ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. 9 

gation and Drainage Investigations, Department of Agriculture, 1904, 
page 264, and several analyses made for the United States Reclama- 
tion Service, including one careful study of Link River, covering a 
period of about a year and a half, are reported by the United States 
Geological Survey in Water-Supply Paper 274, pages 53-55, 1911. 
An analysis of the water of Crater Lake, with analyses of Rogue and 
Wood rivers for comparison, was published in the Journal of Indus- 
trial and Engineering Chemistry for March, 1913, pages 198-199- 
No other analyses of Oregon river waters are known to have been 
printed. 

VALUE OF INFORMATION REGARDING THE QUALITY OF 

SURFACE WATERS. 

Water for drinking must be free from poisonous substances and 
disease-producing organisms and must not contain an excessive 
amount of any dissolved material; it must be clear, odorless, colorless, 
and of agreeable taste, and should also be soft and fairly free from 
iron. Laundry water should not be hard enough to cause waste of 
soap and should not contain substances that will spot or stain fabrics. 
Water for steam generation should not form excessive deposits of 
scale nor produce corrosion. Water for general industrial use should 
not contain substances that will injure the finished product or cause 
waste of raw materials. To ascertain the value of a water for any 
particular use, therefore, it is necessary to determine the nature and 
amount of the materials it holds in suspension and solution. 

Knowledge of the mineral character of a surface water is sufficient 
for most practical purposes only when it is complete as to amounts 
and variations in amount of the mineral constituents under different 
conditions of run-off. Analyses of ''spot samples" are as a rule mis- 
leading, especially those of waters from regions of slight rainfall or of 
marked seasonal variations in precipitation; but long-period samples, 
systematically studied, yield results of general as well as local value 
and elucidate many problems of physiography, chemical denudation, 
and geochemistry. 

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. 

It is impossible to make full and specific acknowledgment of all 
assistance received in the preparation of this report, but appreciation 
of the helpful services of the many chemists, engineers, and others 
who have assisted the writer is hereby expressed. Particular thanks 
are due to the following persons: To Mr. John H. Lewis, State engi- 
neer of Oregon, whose cooperation made the work possible and who 
obtained laboratory and office space in which the work was per- 
formed; to Mr. F. F. Henshaw, who collected data regarding stream 
discharge and the Quaternary history of the Great Basin region; to 
Mr. R. B. Dole, who had immediate supervision of the investigation 



10 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

and whose advice, suggestion, and criticism were most helpful; to 
President Fletcher Homan and the faculty of Willamette University, 
who provided laboratory space; and to Prof. Withycombe and the 
staff of the Oregon Agricultural Experiment Station, who furnished 
many records hitherto unpublished. 

The serial samples at Bull Run, Cazadero, Tolo, and Cascade Locks 
were collected through the kindness, respectively, of the Portland city 
water department, the Portland Railway Light & Power Co., the 
Rogue River Electric Co., and the United States Engineer Corps. 

The writer has drawn freely on the geologic and other reports of 
the United States Geological Survey for information regarding the 
geology of the State and on publications of the United States Weather 
Bureau for information regarding climate and precipitation. De- 
scriptions of rocks exposed in the basin of upper Wallowa River were 
furnished by Mr. Arthur Rudd, of Joseph, Oreg., and Mr. Charles 
Fin keln burg, of Baker, Oreg. 

NATURAL FEATURES OF OREGON. 

TOPOGRAPHY. 

A line of mountains — the Cascade Range — extending north and 
south across the State, divides Oregon into a western humid region 
and an eastern arid region. The range merges into the Klamath 
Mountains on the south, and extends northward, broken only by the 
narrow pass of Columbia River at The Dalles, across the State of 
Washington into British Columbia. Its general elevation in Oregon 
is less than 6,000 feet above sea level, though isolated peaks exceed 
10,000 feet in altitude. Mount Hood, a volcanic peak near the 
northern extremity of the range in Oregon, is the highest mountain 
in the State and reaches an elevation of 11,225 feet. 1 The range is 
of volcanic origin, and its slopes, especially on the west, are deeply 
eroded. Numerous streams, many of them excellent for power 
development, rise on its western slopes and most of them join Willa- 
mette, Umpqua, or Rogue River. The eastern slopes give rise to 
few streams. Deschutes River, parallel to the range and discharging 
into the Columbia above Celilo, is the largest. 

Between the Cascade Mountains and the Pacific Ocean is the Coast 
Range. This range was formed by uplift and distortion of the coastal 
plain and has been deeply dissected by erosion. It receives copious 
rainfall, and its valleys are traversed by many short but torrential 
streams. 

South of the Coast and Cascade ranges and merging into them is 
the Siskiyou Ridge of the Klamath Mountains, which has also been 
deeply dissected by erosion. The most important valleys in this 
ridge are occupied by Rogue, Coquille, and Illinois rivers. In the 

1 Map of Mount Hood quadrangle, U. S. Geol. Survey, 1913. 



NATURAL FEATURES OF OREGON. 11 

northeastern part of the State are the Blue Mountains and the Wal- 
lowa Mountains, in which the general elevation is 8,000 feet and 
isolated peaks rise to greater height. The most important streams 
flowing from these mountains are Umatilla, Grande Ronde, Powder, 
and Silvies rivers. Many of the valleys are comparatively smooth, 
but because of the great dissection to which the mountains have 
been subjected the topography is commonly rough and broken. 

The central and southern parts of the State consist of a high arid 
plateau over which are scattered many volcanic craters and which is 
so broken by cliffs and valleys that its appearance is in many places 
mountainous. Many of the valleys in this region contain large shallow 
lakes, some of which are permanent and others merely playas. 

The topography of the region thus includes types ranging from 
the chaotically wild gorges of the Snake River basin to the level sage- 
brush plains of the Umatilla or the rolling prairies of Willamette 
Valley. Dense forests clothe the region west of the Cascades and 
are scattered over the better- watered highlands of the interior, but 
the arid plains are generally treeless. 

HYDROGRAPHY. 

RIVERS. 

The principal rivers of Oregon discharge into the Pacific, either 
indirectly through the Columbia, as do Malheur, Owyhee, Powder, 
Grande Ronde, Umatilla, John Day, Deschutes, and Willamette 
rivers, or directly, as do Siletz, Umpqua, Coquille, Rogue, Illinois, 
and Klamath rivers. 

Most of the streams of central, south-central, and southeastern 
Oregon, however, discharge into the landlocked lakes of the Great 
Basin. Few of the rivers of this region are perennial, and the large 
shallow lakes that occupy the chief depressions are permanent only 
when evaporation is balanced or exceeded by inflow. Where surface 
flow is deficient intermittent lakes or playas are formed. The chief 
streams of the Great Basin region are Chewaucan, Ana, Donner und 
Blitzen, and Silvies rivers; the important lakes are Warner, Harney, 
Malheur, Abert, Summer, and Silver lakes. 

Goose Lake, in south-central Oregon and northern California, oc- 
cupies a valley in all essential respects similar to the valleys of the 
Great Basin lakes, and has at present no surface outlet, but as it has, 
within historic times, overflowed southward into Pit River, a tribu- 
tary of the Sacramento, it is considered part of the San Francisco 
Bay drainage basin. 

LAKES. 

About 1.13 per cent of the surface of Oregon is occupied by lakes, 
most of which are situated in the Great Basin region or in the Cas- 
cade Mountains. Owing partly to absence of detailed surveys but 



12 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 



chiefly to the marked variations in size which many of the lakes 
undergo, precise information as to their areas is meager, but that 
which is available appears in the following table: 

Principal lakes of Oregon. 



Lake. 



Abert 

Alkali 

Alvord 

Anderson 

Aneroid 

Aspen 

Boca 

Blur 

Bluejoint 

Buck 

Bull Run 

Christmas 

Clear 

Do 

Cow Creek Lakes. 

Crater 

Crescent 

Crump 

Davis 

Deer 

Diamond 

Dog 

East 

Flagstaff 

Fish 

Do 

Fourmile 

Goose 



Countv. 



Drainage area. 



Water surface. 



Great Basin 

....do 

....do 

....do 

Wallowa River 

Klamath River 

Donner und Blitzen River. 
Deschutes River 



Guano 

Harney 

Hart 

Juniper 

Do 

Klamath, Upper 

Klamath, Lower 

Klamath Marsh 

Lake of the Woods 

Loon 

Long 

Lost 

Malheur 

Marion 

Mugwump 

Odell 

Olive 

Pauline 

Pelican 

Round 

Silver 

Do 

Squaw 

Sutters 

Summer 

Summit 

Swan 

Thorn 

Trout 

Tule 

Tumtum 

Waldo 

Wallowa 

Warner (comprises An- 
derson, B 1 ue join t , 
Crump, Fla^stalT, 
Hart, Mugwump, ana 
1'clican lakes). 



Lake 

....do 

Harney 

Lake 

Wallowa 

Klamath 

Harney 

Crook 

Lake Great Basin 

Klamath Klamath River. 

Clackamas Sandy River 

Lake Great Basin 

Lane McKenzie River. 

Wasco Deschutes River 

Malheur j Owyhee River . . 

Klamath Crater Lake 

do ! Deschutes River 

Lake Great Basin 

Klamath Deschutes River 

do do 

Douglas Umpqua River. . 

Lake Great Basin 

Crook Deschutes River 

Lake Great Basin 

Klamath do 

Jackson Rogue River 

Klamath Klamath River . 

Lake Great Basin 



do do 

Harney do 

Lake j do 

Harney j do 

Lake ; do 

Klamath ■ Klamath River . 

do ; do 

do i do 

do I do 

Douglas 

Klamath 

Clackamas 

Harney 

Linn 

Lake 

Klamath 

Grant 

Crook 

Lake 

Klamath 

Lake 

Harney 

Jackson 

Crook 

Lake 

Klamath 

do 

Lake 

Crook 

Klamath 

Harney 

Lane 

Wallowa 

Lake 



Umpqua River 

Klamath River 

Sandy River 

Great Basin 

Santiam River 

Great Basin 

Deschutes River 

John Day River 

Deschutes River 

Great Basin 

Klamath River 

Great Basin 

do 

Rogue River 

Deschutes River 

Great Basin 

Deschutes River 

Great Basin 

do 

Deschutes River 

Klamath River 

Great Basin 

Willamette River 

Grande Ronde River. 
Great Basin 



60 square miles.** 
Variable. 

Do. 

Do. 

6.1 square miles. 

Overflow only. 

0. 09 square mile. 

Variable. 

Swamp land only. 

0.58 square mile.& 

Variable. 

0.40 square mile.fr 

0.48 square mile.fr 

Indefinite. 

21.30 square miles, c 

0.59 square mile.d 

Variable. 

4.25 square miles.fr 

0.96 square mile.fr 

0.75 square mile.fr 

Variable. 

0.75 square mile.fr 

0.S0 square mile.fr 

190 square miles, mostly in 

California.d 
Playa. 

54 square miles.d 
Variable. 

76.6 square miles.fr 
133 square miles. fr e 
69.8 square miles. b 
1.9 square miles. b 
0.45 square mile.fr 
2 square miles. & 
0.7 square mile.fr 
73 square miles.d 
0.56 square mile.fr 
Variable. 

5.93 square miles.fr 
0.15 square mile.* 

Variable. 

15 square miles.a 
7 square miles.d 

0.43 square mile.fr 
70 square miles.a 
1.36 square miles. b 
Variable. 

Do. 
1.46 square iniles.fr 
Mostly in California. 
Variable. 
8.9 square miles. d 
2.3 square miles.* 
Variable. 



a Waring, G. A., Geology and water resources of a portion of south-central Oregon: U. S. Geol. Survey 
Water-Supply Paper 220, p. 11 1908. 
b Pl&nimeter measurements by Walton Van Winkle on best available maps, 
c Diller, J. S., Crater Lake National Park, Oregon, p. 28, U. S. Dept. Int., 1912. 
d U. S. Reclamation Service, unpublished reports. 
e Office records, U. S. Geol. Survey. 



NATURAL FEATURES. OF OREGON. 13 

The larger lakes, except Crater Lake, are situated in the central 
Oregon plateau region, and are subject to wide fluctuations in area. 
Many of them, such as the Warner Lakes and Goose Lake, are slowly 
diminishing as a result of deficient inflow; several, among them Mal- 
heur, Harney, Silver (Harney County), Goose, and the Warner lakes, 
will eventually disappear, owing to the use of the tributary waters for 
irrigation. 

SWAMPS. 

The marshes that in places border Columbia and Willamette rivers 
are unimportant, but the long flat valleys of the Great Basin contain 
rich, fertile, swamp lands, susceptible of great development when 
drained. Much of Harney Valley may be classed as reclaimable 
swamp land, Blitzen Valley alone containing nearly 100,000 acres of 
marsh, most of which is now being drained. Chewaucan Marsh, below 
Paisley, contains more than 25,000 acres of land that has been drained 
and utilized for wild hay. Other important swamps are the Klamath 
marshes and the overflow lands of Warner Valley. Reclamation of 
these lands is either now under way or is contemplated. 

FLOODS. 

The rivers reach a high stage during winter, most often in January, 
and some rivers reach a second flood stage late in spring or early in 
summer. The winter flood is the normal result of increased precipi- 
tation in winter ; the summer floods are caused by the melting of snow 
on the mountain slopes. Columbia River is exceptional in that its 
period of maximum discharge is in June, its winter discharge being 
relatively slight. The floods of the larger rivers are at times serious. 
A rise of more than 30 feet above low water has been recorded on the 
Willamette, and the Columbia sometimes reaches 60 feet above ex- 
treme low stage. 

GEOLOGY. 

ROOKS. 

Comparatively little detailed information has been collected con- 
cerning the geology of Oregon as a whole, but the following general 
features have been ascertained, the result largely of investigations 
by Arnold and Hannibal, Condon, Diller, Lindgren, Merriam, Russell, 
Waring, and others. 

The oldest geologic formations recognized in Oregon are exposed 
in the Blue and Wallowa mountains in the northeastern part of the 
State and in the Klamath Mountains of southern Oregon and northern 
California. The Blue and Wallowa mountains consist of sedimentary 
and igneous rocks, which have been referred to the Carboniferous, 
Jurassic, and Triassic periods. These rocks have been invaded by 
considerably younger plutonic masses and are overlapped on the 
flanks of the mountains by the Columbia River basalt and other 
volcanic and sedimentary formations of the John Day Basin and 



14 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

Snake River plains. In the Klamath Mountains Paleozoic and 
Mesozoic (Jurassic and Lower Cretaceous) strata are exposed. The 
older rocks in the three mountain ranges mentioned occupy super- 
ficially a relatively small part of the State. 

The Coast Range is composed chiefly of folded and faulted sedi- 
ments of Tertiary age, overlain on both sides by Pleistocene and 
Recent deposits. The range contains also some volcanic, but no 
metamorphie, rocks, so far as known. 

The Cascade Range consists chiefly of Tertiary volcanic rocks and 
contains several recent volcanoes. The lavas of the range overlie 
the older sediments of the western foothills. The prevailing rocks 
are basalts, rhyolites, and andesites. The range is bordered on the 
east by the Columbia River basalt, which, with other Tertiary rocks, 
chiefly of volcanic or lacustrine origin, covers all of eastern Oregon 
with the exception of the Blue Mountains and portions of the valleys 
of Snake and John Day rivers. 

The Columbia River basalt has nowhere been traced to its source. 
It is considered to have issued from extensive fissures now hidden by 
the flow itself. The extent of the basalt-covered area has not been 
exactly determined, but Russell 1 considered previous estimates of 
250,000 square miles to be decidedly conservative. The flows extend 
over southeastern Washington, eastern Oregon, northeastern Cali- 
fornia, northern Nevada, and parts of southern and western Idaho, 
to depths up to several thousand feet. The lower canyon of Deschutes 
River exposes in places 24 distinct superposed flows, and where the 
Columbia has cut its way through the gap at The Dalles sections of 
basaltic cliffs more than 3,000 feet thick are visible and the bottom 
of the flows is not exposed. The Steens Mountain fault exposes 
more than 5,000 feet of lava and an additional unknown thickness is 
hidden by the sediments of Alvord Valley. The rocks near Steens 
have not been studied in detail and possibly do not all belong to the 
Columbia River basalt, which consists essentially of a series of 
basaltic flows interstratified with beds of tuff and lapilli. A large 
territory east of the Cascade Mountains is covered with a deposit of 
pumiceous sand, and is for this reason called the Great Sandy Desert. 
The Columbia River basalt and associated volcanic and lacustrine 
formations were erupted or laid down during a long period of vol- 
canism which began in early Tertiary time and continued more or 
less interruptedly into the Quaternary. 

Quaternary lacustrine and fluviatile deposits overlie large areas 
of the basalts in central and southern Oregon. These deposits are of 
slight thickness but are important on account of the fertility of the 
soil derived from them and because of the possible occurrence in 
them of workable saline deposits. 

i Russell, I. ('., Geology and water resources of central Oregon: V . S. Geol. Survey Bull. 252, p. 79, 190o. 



NATURAL FEATURES OF OREGON. 15 



SOILS. 



Soil is residue from rock decay, altered and added to as a result of 
vegetable life. Trie soil may occupy the place of the rock from which 
it is derived, or it may have been brought from a distance by wind, 
water, or gravity. The character of the soil, then, is largely, but 
not necessarily entirely, determined by the composition of the neigh- 
boring rocks. Basaltic rocks, such as comprise the greater part of 
the Columbia River basalt, produce soils rich in lime but poor in 
phosphorus. The basaltic soils are light and easily worked, rich in 
iron, and therefore of reddish color. They are very productive, 
although their potash content is in many places low. Sedimentary 
rocks produce soils of great variety. Limestones form clayey soils 
of great productiveness; sandstones form light soils which are rich 
in arid regions but which are poor in regions of great humidity, 
owing to the leaching out of soluble plant food. In general, argilla- 
ceous sandstones produce rich loamy soils. Slates, shales, and 
allied rocks produce heavy clayey soils, and natural clays undergo 
little change. • 

In the following paragraphs Bradley 1 presents an excellent sum- 
mary of conditions in Oregon affecting soils: 

The soils grade from the rich black loams of the coastal plains and lower river courses 
of western Oregon to the extremely sandy soils of the eastern and the coarse granite 
soils of the southern portion of the State, with many intermediate types. Volcanic 
rocks predominate in the northwest and Oregon soils are largely derived from weath- 
ered basalt, diabase, and diorite, particularly in the eastern and western part of the 
State. In southern Oregon granites, limestones, and other metamorphic rock exist 
also and have therefore determined in part the mineral character of the soils of this 
section. Where the weathering process has taken place under humid conditions, as 
in western Oregon, clay loams, rich in humus, have been formed, while under the 
climatic influences of the arid or semiarid conditions of that portion of the State east 
of the Cascade Range a sandy soil has resulted. 
The general soil types of the State may be distinguished as follows: 
Western Oregon: 

Willamette Valley clay loams. 

Red hill soil of foothills. 

Beaverdam or muck soils. 

Sandy loams of river bottoms. 

Black loams of coastal plains. 
Eastern Oregon: 

Clay loams of valleys. 

Sandy. 

Silt loams. 

Volcanic ash. 
Southern Oregon: 

Clay or adobe soils. 

Clay loams. 

Granitic . 

i Bradley, C. E., The soils of Oregon: Oregon Agr. Coll. Exper. Sta. Bull. 112, p. 4, 1912. 



16 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

CLIMATE. 1 

Mean temperature in Oregon differs with elevation and with dis- 
tance inland. In Columbia River valley and west of the Cascades 
at points below 2,000 feet above sea level it is approximately 52° F.; 
east of the Cascade Range and south of the Columbia it ranges from 
43° to 51°. A universal characteristic is the uniformly low tem- 
perature of the summer nights. In the coastal strip the greatest 
annual range in temperature is from 10° to 97°, with an average of 
217 days between frosts. In the valley strip between the Coast and 
Cascade ranges the range is greater; maximum recorded tempera- 
tures for Portland and Ashland have been 102° and 108° F., respec- 
tively; minimum temperatures for those places have been —2° and 
— 4° F. The average time between last and first frosts ranges from 
213 days at Portland to 179 days at Ashland. In the higher sections 
of this district the extremes of temperature both daily and yearly are 
more marked, and at Lakeview, elevation 5,060 feet above sea level, 
frosts have occurred every month in the year. The higher elevations 
of the Cascades and the Blue Mountains are subject to lower tem- 
peratures than those mentioned. 

Rainfall ranges from less than 8 inches in the southeastern part of 

the State to more than 138 inches in the northwestern coastal strip, 

and averages from 75 to 138 inches along the coast, from 20 to 45 inches 

in the valley region west of the Cascade Range, from 50 to 100 inches 

in the Cascades, from 8 to 22 inches on the central high plateau, from 

10 to 15 inches in the Columbia Valley east of the Cascades, and from 

12 to 25 inches in the foothills and valleys of the Blue Mountains. 

Maximum precipitation occurs in winter, and the summers are dry. 

East of the Cascades there is a secondary maximum precipitation in 

May and June. 

ECONOMIC FEATURES. 

POPULATION. 

Oregon is one of the most sparsely settled States. The census of 
1910 showed that it contained 7 inhabitants to the square mile. 
The total population in 1910 was 672,765, an increase of 62.7 per cent 
over that shown by the census of 1900. About three-fourths of the 
inhabitants reside in the counties west of the Cascades and almost 
one-third in the city of Portland. Seven cities have more than 5,000 
inhabitants each, all but one, Baker City, being in the western third 
of the State. Much of the high plateau region will probably be given 
over almost exclusively to cattle and sheep raising, the region being 
better suited for range than for other purposes, but the valley lands, 
the basins of Deschutes and Crooked rivers, and the Columbia River 
valley are well adapted to agriculture and will support a population 
much denser than the present. 

1 Abstracted from Climatology of the United States: C. S. Dept. Alt. Weather Bur. Bull, Q, pp. 
•ji^-'.m, 1906. 



ECONOMIC FEATURES. 17 

AGRICULTURE. 

The climatic differences between eastern and western Oregon have 
resulted in important differences in agricultural development. The 
high plateau region of the eastern part of the State is the seat of the 
live-stock industry, but in the valley regions and mesa lands along 
the Columbia and its tributaries wheat, barley, alfalfa, and kindred 
crops are raised. Dry farming is practiced successfully in some places, 
but irrigation is rapidly supplanting it. The census of 1910 reported 
11,685,110 acres of farm land, of which 686,129 acres were irrigated, 
and the amount included in all irrigation projects begun or completed 
was 2,527,208 acres. The United States Reclamation Service is con- 
structing projects in Klamath and Umatilla valleys to serve 185,000 
acres. Several Carey Act projects are also under construction, but 
the largest acreage has been irrigated by private or partnership 
enterprises. 

Though summers in western Oregon are dry, that region is plenti- 
fully supplied with rain in winter and irrigation has not been prac- 
ticed, extensively. Willamette Valley is the chief agricultural center, 
but several smaller sections produce excellent crops. The products 
include oats, potatoes, hops, prunes, apples, berries, and dairy prod- 
ucts. The hop industry is especially important, the crop for 1910 
being valued at little less than $2,000,000. 1 Prune growing is attain- 
ing prominence and is one of the most important industries of the 
valley. Hood River valley is famous for its apples and strawberries. 

LUMBERING AND MANUFACTURING. 

Lumbering is the principal industry of Oregon. The State ranked 
ninth as to amount of raw lumber cut in 1909. The value of lumber 
products for that year was $30,200,000, or 32.5 per cent of that for all 
industrial products of the State. The principal woods cut are 
Douglas fir and pine, and the centers of the industry are in Multno- 
mah, Coos, and Lane counties. Most of the lumber is used as such, 
either raw or finished, but a small amount is converted into pulp, 
paper, and wood distillates. 

Other important industries in the State are flour milling, slaughter- 
ing and meat packing, printing and publishing, manufacture of dairy 
products, tanning, and manufacture of woolen goods. The manufac- 
ture of metal goods is small. 

Sawdust from the lumber mills, soda and sulphite wastes from the 
paper mills, waste liquors from the tanneries, scouring and dye liquors 
from the woolen mills affect the quality of the surface waters, and the 
disposal of these wastes should be regulated by proper protective 
legislation. 



i Hoff, O: P., Bureau of Labor Statistics, State of Oregon, Fourth Biennial Rept., p. 61, 1911, 
47195°— wsp 363—14 2 



18 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

CONSTITUENTS OF NATURAL WATERS. 

Even rain, the purest natural water, contains appreciable amounts 
of organic and inorganic material in solution and in suspension. 
Rain falling near the seacoast contains more or less dissolved salt 
that has been derived from the ocean with the water vapor — a fact 
that has been utilized in the stud}' of the pollution of waters near 
coasts by determining the quantity of chlorine carried by normal 
unpolluted waters. 1 Charts indicating the amount of chlorine 
brought down in rain can be prepared by plotting the results of such 
determinations and connecting points at which equal amounts are 
found, thus establishing lines of equal chlorine (isochlors). Abnor- 
malities resulting from human pollution can be discovered by com- 
paring analyses of other waters with the data in these charts. But 
isochlors are useful only near the coast in humid regions that do not 
contain chloride-bearing rocks, and they are of extremely doubtful 
value in regions where rainfall is subject to great seasonal variations. 
Streams flowing through arid regions contain relatively large amounts 
of chloride left after incomplete leaching of the sedimentary rocks, 
and though the amount of native chlorine may be small where the 
rocks are mostly volcanic or plutonic, unpolluted waters in that region 
may be high in chlorine because of the concentration of ''cyclic" or 
wind-borne chlorine by evaporation. 

Carbon dioxide and oxygen, the chief gases dissolved in rain water, 
are powerful agents of solution and oxidation, and the water contain- 
ing them, having reached the earth, begins at once to acquire a fur- 
ther charge of dissolved matter. The carbon dioxide already present 
is augmented by that produced by the decay of vegetable matter on 
the surface of the ground and in the soil. Silica and the rock silicates 
are practically insoluble in pure water, but hydrated silicates are 
easily decomposed in weak solutions of carbonic acid, and " quartz is 
attacked and dissolved by prolonged digestion in even dilute alkaline 
carbonate solutions." 2 Silicate rocks are thus broken down by the 
action of water bearing carbon dioxide, and silica and alkalies are dis- 
solved. The dissolved carbonic acid also attacks limestone with 
which it comes into contact, for calcium carbonate, though it is only 
slightly soluble in pure water, goes readily into solution in the pres- 
ence of carbonic acid, probably as calcium bicarbonate. 

Direct solution, hydrolysis, and double decomposition all aid in 
bringing other materials into solution. Many secondary rocks, such 
as gypsum, enter directly into solution, and limestone may be dis- 
solved by interaction with alkali sulphates. 

1 Jackson, D. D., The normal distribution of chlorine in the natural waters of New York and New Eng- 
land: U. B. QeoL Survey Water-Supply Paper 1-14, p. 10, 1905. 

2 Lunge and Millberg, Zeitschr. BUgBW. Cliemie, pp. 300 and 42."), 1897. Cited by Chase Palmer, in The 
geochemical interpretation of water analyses: V. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 479, p. 23, 1911. 



WATER FOR BOILERS. 19 

All elements are soluble in water to some extent, but relatively few 
are found in appreciable amounts in natural waters. The important 
materials usually found are silica, iron, alumina, calcium, magnesium, 
sodium, potassium, carbonate, bicarbonate, sulphate, chloride, 
nitrate, and organic matter. 

WATER FOR DOMESTIC USE. 

Drinking water must be free from suspended or dissolved matter 
that may endanger health or render the water unpalatable. Even a 
small quantity of iron gives a disagreeable taste to water and injures 
the quality of tea and coffee by combining with the steep liquors of the 
beverages to produce inks. The presence of sodium chloride in water 
in amounts greater than 400 parts per million can be detected by 
taste by most persons, and water containing more than 1,000 parts 
per million would be palatable to few. Water containing large 
amounts of sulphate tends to produce unpleasant laxative effects. 

The esthetic quality of water used for drinking is also important, 
and for this reason it should be clear, colorless, and odorless. Sus- 
pended matter not only renders water unattractive in appearance 
but clogs pipes and valves, reduces the capacity of reservoirs, stains 
clothes, and produces sludge in boilers. For domestic uses other 
than cooking and drinking water should be soft, as hard water 
increases the consumption of soap by reaction of the alkaline earths 
in the water with the soap to form insoluble compounds. Hard 
water and water containing iron also spot and "rust" clothing 
washed in it. 

WATER FOR BOILERS. 

Water used for generating steam should be examined for the 
purpose of forecasting and preventing corrosion, which shortens the 
life of a boiler, and the deposition of scale, which lowers the economy 
of heat transference. Foaming in the boiler, a serious trouble in 
some places, does not occur in using most surface waters of the 
Pacific Northwest. 

CORROSION. 

The corrosion or slow solution of a boiler manifests itself as pitting 
or grooving of the steel. As no metal is absolutely insoluble in 
water, a small — perhaps inappreciable — amount will be dissolved 
even under ideal conditions. Severe corrosion is caused by the 
action of acids or, if the metal of the boiler is nonhomogeneous, by 
the electrical action due to the presence of salt solutions. Severe 
corrosion due to the presence of organic matter or dissolved gases 
capable of producing acids or to the depolarizing effect of dissolved 
oxygen may occur with waters of low mineral content. The sub- 
stances that cause corrosion are: (1) Dissolved carbon dioxide, 



20 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

hydrogen sulphide, and similar gases; (2) dissolved oxygen; (3) 
organic substances — particularly organic oils — that produce organic 
acids by decomposition; (4) dissolved mineral acids; (5) dissolved 
salts having acid reaction and dissolved salts that free acid when 
they are decomposed by heat, such as calcium nitrate, aluminum 
sulphate, copper sulphate, magnesium chloride, and, more rarely, 
calcium chloride and magnesium sulphate; and (6) dissolved alkali 
or other salts that undergo hydrolysis. 

The means that may be adopted to prevent corrosion include 
allowing a thin film of scale to be deposited in the boiler, increasing 
the alkalinity of the water (particularly by means of soda ash), 
preheating the water to remove dissolved gases, generating an 
electric current to keep the iron of the boiler electro-positive, and 
making the boiler shell of absolutely pure, homogeneous metal. 
Any of these means may be effective under proper conditions, but 
the means to be employed should be adopted only after study of 
the causes and the resultant economy. Thus far, however, it has 
been impracticable to make boilers of pure, homogeneous metal. 

Stabler' s formula x is useful for ascertaining the approximate tend- 
ency of the dissolved solids in a water to produce corrosion, but it 
can not be depended upon absolutely in estimating the corrosive 
tendency of soft, highly colored waters like many of those found in 
Oregon, as corrosion with them is less likely to be caused by acids 
freed by reactions of dissolved mineral solids than by dissolved 
gases or by acids produced by decomposition of organic matter. The 
corrosion factor computed by his formula for such waters is mis- 
leading unless it can be understood that it refers only to preheated 
water and that sufficient soda ash may have to be introduced to 
counteract the effect of organic acids. 

FORMATION OF SCALE. 

Formation of scale is the deposition of material within the boiler 
either by sedimentation of suspended matter or by precipitation of 
dissolved matter. The texture of the scale may range from soft 
muck or sludge to hard, crystalline, closely adhering incrustations. 
Any material that is neither corrosive nor volatile will, when present 
in sufficient quantity, form scale, but as the more soluble substances, 
such as salts of the alkalies, do not become sufficiently concentrated 
to be deposited, scale usually comprises only compounds of the 
alkaline earths, suspended matter, and colloidal matter. 

The scaling matter in the surface waters of Oregon is composed 
largely of silica, clay, and organic matter, which are deposited as 
more or less adherent crust. The colloidal material includes silica, 

1 Stabler, Herman, Some stream waters of the \v<^tern United States: V . S. Oeol. Survey Water- 
Supply Paper 271, p. 17:5, 1911. 



WATER FOR BOILEES. 21 

iron, aluminum, and organic matter. Silicon may be present as a 
silicate radicle in some waters, but it is usually considered to be 
entirely colloidal silica (Si0 2 ). Deposits of silica from most waters 
are relatively insignificant, but where it forms a large proportion of 
the scale-forming material, as in the waters of Oregon, it produces a 
hard, strongly adherent incrustation that is troublesome and danger- 
ous and is removable only with great difficulty. Iron and aluminum 
are deposited mostly as hydrates which are converted by heat into 
oxides, although they may be precipitated as basic salts. The amount 
of these bases is usually too small to be important, but where alumi- 
num sulphate is used as a coagulant in water purification, an excess 
of the reagent hydrolyzing in the boiler may cause precipitation of 
the hydrate and formation of sulphuric acid, which is strongly 
corrosive. Organic matter, especially that of an oily nature, is 
troublesome, as it either hydrolyzes and corrodes the metal of the 
boiler or is deposited as a hard varnish-like coating that renders the 
boiler walls liable to become overheated. 

The chief scale-forming ingredient of most boiler waters is calcium, 
which is deposited as the carbonate or the sulphate. The amount of 
it that can be present without causing serious trouble depends largely 
on the relative abundance of the acid radicles; a given amount of 
calcium is less objectionable in a carbonate than in a sulphate water, 
because preheating a calcium carbonate water precipitates most of 
the calcium as soft, easily removable sludge, but preheating a calcium- 
sulphate water removes little scale-forming matter and leaves the 
water more likely to yield a hard, resistant incrustant. Magnesium 
is in some respects analogous to calcium in its action in a boiler, 
except that it usually is deposited as the oxide and thus sets free 
mineral acids that may under some conditions of reaction corrode the 
boiler. 

Alkali salts form no permanent precipitate, but as the addition of 
soda ash or other alkali in water softening increases the amount of 
alkalies in the softened water and therefore its tendency to foam, it is 
well to ascertain beforehand whether chemical treatment is likely to 
obviate one objectionable feature by introducing another. 

Bicarbonate is converted by heat into carbonate, part or all of 
which may be precipitated with the alkaline earths. Many natural 
waters contain enough bicarbonate to precipitate thus the greater 
part of the alkaline earths, the addition of softening reagents being 
then unnecessary. The carbonate scale from such water is soft 
sludge that is easily removable from the heating system by blowing, 
off or similar means. Carbonate scale is the least harmful to boilers 
and the object of chemical treatment is to remove as much as possible 
of the incrustants as carbonates. 



22 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

Sulphate forms hard, compact scale with the alkaline earths. As it 
is very expensive to remove the sulphate radicle from waters, it is cus- 
tomary to add sufficient carbonate alkali to precipitate the alkaline 
earths, the sulphate being left in equilibrium with the alkalies. The 
quantities of nitrate and chloride in most surface waters of Oregon 
are not great enough to make them important in boiler-room practice, 
though they may cause corrosion under some conditions in highly 

concentrated waters. 

FOAMING. 

Foaming in boilers is the formation of bubbles in the steam space 
above the surface of the water. If foaming proceeds to such extent 
that water is forced from the boiler with the steam, "priming" is said 
to occur. The causes of foaming and priming are somewhat obscure, 
but they are probably connected with the presence of the hydroxyl 
radicle, as foaming apparently takes place when a solution containing 
c weak acid in balance with a strong base is heated. As the amount 
of alkali in a water is an index of its hydroxyl-producing power, it is 
customary to measure the foaming propensity by the content of 
alkali bases. Suspended matter, not only that nominally in the feed 
water but also that composed of precipitated sludge and scale, may, 
however, cause foaming, and it is well recognized that the design of 
the boiler and the manner of its operation have much to do with 
accelerating or lessening foaming and priming. 

WATER FOR USE IN FACTORIES. 
INDUSTRIES CHIEFLY AFFECTED. 

The factories of Oregon in which quality of water has direct bearing 

on economy of operation or quality of output or both comprise 

breweries, tanneries, dye works, ice plants, laundries, meat-packing 

houses, paper and pulp mills, and wool-scouring works, of which the 

largest are the paper mills, breweries, woolen mills, and laundries. A 

brief discussion of the use of water and the harmful effects of certain 

constituents in each of these industries is presented in the following 

paragraphs. The reader is referred to any of the standard works on 

industrial chemistry or on the use of water in special industries for 

more complete discussions of the operations and reactions that are 

involved. 

BREWERIES. 

The water used for brewing must be of great bacterial purity and 
must contain suitable mineral matter in solution, for it is not only a 
solvent and a reaction medium throughout the whole process but it 
also forms a part of the finished product. Decomposable organic 
substances or bacteria are specially harmful, as they mold the barley, 
lessen the activity of the yeast, and destroy the keeping qualities of 



WATER FOR USE IN FACTORIES. 23 

the beer by producing offensive putrefaction products. 1 Iron forms 
dark-colored precipitates with the diastase, thus disturbing the 
conversion of the barley. As it also forms inks with the tannin of 
the hops, beer made with water containing much iron acquires a dark 
color, a disagreeable odor, and an unpleasant taste. 

Calcium-sulphate water is desirable for making light-colored beer 
free from resinous taste, because the sulphate reacting with the soft 
resins (" bitter principle") dissolved from the hops produces insoluble 
resins and thus removes them from the beer. Water high in alkaline 
carbonates makes a dark beer, on the other hand, as carbonate pro- 
motes the solution of these resins. Light beer is said to have a hop 
flavor and dark beer a malt flavor, but there is more hop extract in 
dark than in light beers, the difference in flavor really being due to 
the greater amount of resins in the dark beer and to the less amount 
of both hop resins and malt in the light beer because of their slighter 
solubility in sulphate water. Waters moderately high in chloride aid 
the fermentation, but those too high in chloride retard development 
of the yeast and consequently retard fermentation. 

PAPER MILLS. 

Water is used in immense quantities in the manufacture of paper, 
many mills requiring almost 400,000 gallons of water per ton of 
product. It serves as a solvent and a carrier for chemicals, as in the 
digesters and cookers, it conveys the pulp through the various 
machines, it is used in the boilers and heaters, and finally it is the 
medium in which the wastes are removed. The water supply is 
usually treated to remove suspended and organic matter, particu- 
larly living organisms. Much suspended matter may cause irregu- 
larities in texture and appearance of the finer grades of paper, and 
organic matter may promote algal growths that streak and spot the 
paper and choke screens and pipes. Organic matter also wastes 
bleach and bisulphite liquors. Iron is especially undesirable in the 
water, as it is deposited from alkaline solutions and spots or streaks 
the paper. Cross and Bevan 2 state that very soft water is undesir- 
able for loading papers with any form of calcium sulphate because of 
the solubility and consequent waste of these materials in such waters. 
Dole 3 mentions the probable undesirability of strong chloride waters 
for the same reason. The presence of alkali chlorides is, however, 
helpful in separating the thick sludge in preparing size. Very hard 
water is objectionable in the chemical processes and in making the 

i Palmer, Chase, Quality of the waters [of the Blue Grass region of Kentucky]: U. S. Geol. Survey Water- 
Supply Paper 233, p. 195, 1909. 

2 Cross, C. F., and Bevan, E. J., A textbook of paper-making, New York, p. 294, 1900. Cited by Dole, 
It. B., The chemical character of the waters [of north-central Indiana].- C. S. Geol. Survey Water-Pupply 
Paper 254, p. 247, 1910. 

3 Idem. 



24 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

large amounts of steam that are required in most mills. Hard water 
deposits calcium carbonate on the screens used to separate the pulp 
from the Jiquors; it also interferes with sizing by precipitating the 
resins of the size, and with tinting by wasting the dyes or changing 
their reactions. 

WOOL-SCOURING, BLEACHING, AND DYEING WORKS. 

Water in which wool is scoured should be soft, as hard water forms 
with the wool-grease insoluble soaps that cling to the fiber and inter- 
fere with subsequent processes, thus causing the wool to be of inferior 
grade, hard "feel," poor luster, and uneven color. No Oregon wool 
is now bleached, as the natural cream-colored stock is more salable. 

Though hard water is required in some processes soft water is 
generally essential in economical and successful dyeing of wool. 
This textile combines with dyes much more readily than does cotton 
or linen because of the nitrogen in the wool, and dyeing it is therefore 
somewhat simpler. The dyes may be of acid, basic, or mordant type. 
As the reactions involved are delicate and easily disturbed and as 
large quantities of water are used it is very important to avoid 
irregularities in its quality that may cause variations in the color of 
the finished product. In some processes the dye may be precipitated 
on the fiber by reaction with alkaline earths and thus produce irregu- 
lar spots. Iron is especially objectionable because it may alter the 
colors in white and madder dyeing. Much chloride is also objection- 
able as it may react with the dyes. 

LAUNDRIES. 

The calcium and magnesium in hard water cause waste of soap 
by forming insoluble compounds with the fatty acids and thus 
destroying their cleansing value. The insoluble compounds thus 
deposited on the fabrics, being later partly decomposed by heat, 
produce spots and rust on the cloth. Iron in water is also objec- 
tionable because it gives rise to rust spots. Suspended matter 
deposited on the cloth gives it a soiled appearance. 

Whipple, 1 after having determined the soap-consuming power of 
waters of different hardness with nine different kinds of soap, con- 
cludes that for each part per million increase in hardness 200 pounds 
of soap is wasted for each million gallons of water used for cleansing. 
At 5 cents a pound this represents a loss of $10 per million gallons. 
It is therefore apparent that the expense of pretreating many waters 
for laundry use will be more than justified by the saving in cost of 
soap. 

i Whipple, G. C, The value of pure water, pp. 24-28, New York, 1907. 



PURIFICATION OF WATER. 25 

TANNERIES. 

Hides to be tanned are usually unhaired by immersion in solutions 
of quicklime. If very hard water is used in that process the calcium 
carbonate that is deposited on the skins causes spots in the leather 
by preventing thorough action of the tannin. The tannin of the 
tan bark also is not thoroughly extracted and may be precipitated 
by hard water. Large quantities of chlorides prevent " plumping " 
in the tanning process and make the leather thin and .flabby. 1 

SLAUGHTERHOUSE S. 

Meat-packing industries use large quantities of water in washing 
and preparing the various by-products, and it is necessary that this 
water be free from organisms that might grow in and cause decay 
of the finished goods. Soft water also is preferable, as much water 
is employed for heating. 

PURIFICATION OF WATER. 2 

SLOW SAND FILTRATION. 

Slow sand niters have been used for nearly a century and are con- 
structed in essentially the same manner now as when first built. 
A series of perforated tiles or pipes connected with a discharge pipe 
is laid on the bottom of a large impervious basin, now usually con- 
structed of concrete. Layers of gravel, graded in size from 25 to 
about 3 millimeters in diameter, are placed over this network to a 
depth of about 1 foot, and over the gravel is placed a layer of fine 
sand 2 to 5 feet thick. Regulating chambers, pumps, and sand- 
cleaning devices are secondary mechanical features of the plant. 
The niters are roofed where danger from freezing is serious, but where 
the climate is mild they may be left open in order to lessen the cost 
of construction. The niters are divided into beds usually less than 
an acre in extent, so that units can be withdrawn from service for 
cleaning without interrupting the operation of the system. 

During filtration the water sinks through the sand, in which its 
suspended mud and bacteria are retained, and flows through the 
discharge pipe into the clear-water basin or the distribution system. 
The rate of nitration, ranging from 2,000,000 to 4,000,000 gallons 
per acre per day, depends on the physical condition of the filter, the 
thickness of the bed, the average size of the sand particles, and the 
turbidity and temperature of the water. When the loss of head in 
the filter, as it is gradually clogged with slime and detritus, becomes 

1 Rogers, A., Leather: Rogers and Aubert's Industrial chemistry, p. 798, New York, 1912. 

2 For details of the construction, operation, and efficiency of filters, disinfection, and general treatment of 
water, see Johnson, G. A., The purification of public water supplies: U. S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply 
Paper 315, 1913. 



26 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

great enough to cause too slow nitration, about half an inch of sand 
is removed from the top of the bed and filtration is resumed. The 
sand thus removed is washed and replaced before successive removals 
have rendered the bed too thin to be efficient. The time between 
cleanings is materially shortened when very turbid waters are fil- 
tered, so the slow sand process is adaptable only to relatively clear 
waters or to those that have previously been partly clarified by 
sedimentation. 

By slow sand filtration the suspended matter, including the bac- 
teria, is removed, color is only slightly reduced, hardness is not altered, 
and a small portion of the organic matter is destroyed. The efficiency 
of the filtration depends only partly on the straining effect of the sand 
particles, for it is greater in a filter that has been in service for a short 
time than in a clean one, possibly because of the absorption of certain 
materials on the surface of the sand by the coating of gelatinous muck 
and possibly because of colloidal agglutination and mechanical strain- 
ing of the water through the gelatinous coating. Bacteriologic action 
in the deeper layers of the bed partly oxidizes the organic matter in 
the water and prevents further growth of organisms by destroying 
the available bacterial food. 

The raw water is usually passed first through strainers or ' ' roughing 
filters" or is detained in a sedimentation basin in order to remove 
excessive quantities of suspended matter. Water containing large 
amounts of iron is troublesome because of its tendency to assist growth 
of Crenothrix, an iron-secreting alga, in the underdrains and the dis- 
charge pipe. Water containing much iron may be aerated before 
filtration by being sprayed in fountain-like jets over the raw-water 
basin, thereby oxidizing and precipitating the iron. At several 
places, especially in Europe, preliminary sterilization by ozone, 
ultra-violet rays, or other means is practiced. A very high degree of 
purity is thus attained, but these methods are applicable only to clear 

waters. 

RAPID SAND FILTRATION. 

A rapid sand filter contains two essential parts — the coagulation 
basin and the filter chamber. The coagulation basin, generally an 
oblong tank, is of such size and construction that the water entering 
it reaches the outlet into the filter chamber in two to four hours, time 
for sedimentation as well as coagulation being thus allowed. The 
filter chamber consists of a tank, circular in the early forms but rec- 
tangular in the larger modern types, fitted with a perforated bottom, 
the openings of which are small enough to prevent passage of sand 
grains but large enough to allow ready outflow of the filtered water. 
On the bottom is a bed of carefully graded sand, 30 or 40 inches deep 
and somewhat coarser than that used in slow sand filters. After the 
water, mixed with the dissolved coagulant, has stood for a proper 
period in the coagulation basin it flows into the upper part of the 



PURIFICATION OF WATER. 27 

filter chamber and passes rapidly through the bed of sand into the 
drainpipes, through which it is conducted to the clear-water basin 
for distribution. The rate of filtration is 80,000,000 to 190,000,000 
gallons per acre per day, the usual rate being about 125,000,000 
gallons. 

Though several other coagulants are used the most common one is 
aluminum sulphate. When this substance is introduced in solution 
into the raw water it is immediately hydrolyzed to form aluminum 
hydrate and sulphuric acid. The sulphuric acid reacts with part of 
the carbonate, bicarbonate, and hydrate, setting free carbon dioxide 
and converting temporary into permanent hardness. While the 
aluminum hydrate precipitated in the alkaline solution as a gelat- 
inous mass is forming and congealing it enmeshes the suspended 
matter, including the bacteria, and absorbs the coloring matter. If 
the natural alkalinity of the raw water is not great enough to react 
with all the aluminum sulphate some of the coagulant remains in 
solution, the efficiency of coagulation is reduced, and the effluent is 
acid in reaction and consequently corrosive. This trouble is obviated 
by adding with the aluminum sulphate proper proportions of milk of 
lime or of a solution of soda ash. The coagulant remaining in the 
water after the imperfect sedimentation in the coagulation chamber 
forms on the sand in the filter a slime that makes filtration more thor- 
ough. As rapid accumulation of this slime causes excessive loss of 
head the filter must be frequently cleaned — usually two to four times 
a day. This is done by passing water upward through the sand and 
at the same time forcing compressed air through the perforations 
to break up agglomerations of sand and dirt. The sand is thus 
thoroughly mixed at each washing, so that it can not segregate into 
pockets. The dirty water flows away over the top of the filter. Agi- 
tation of the sand during washing is effected in some of the older filters 
by means of revolving rakes with prongs extending downward into 
the sand. 

Rapid sand filtration affects the chemical composition of the water 
to a much greater extent than slow sand filtration. Color is greatly 
reduced, some iron is precipitated, carbonate, bicarbonate, and 
hydrate are replaced to some extent by sulphate, and the total mineral 
content may be slightly increased. If large amounts of lime are added 
to assist coagulation the hardness and total mineral content are 
decreased; otherwise the temporary hardness is decreased and the 
permanent hardness proportionately increased. With filters of this 
type highly turbid waters can be treated, smaller basins are required 
than for slow sand filters, and highly colored waters can be partly 
decolorized. As rapid sand filters are used chiefly for purifying river 
waters, whose quality is subject to frequent and important fluctua- 
tions, their economical operation requires constant and intelligent 
supervision. 



28 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

STERILIZATION. 

Some methods by which sterilization of water for domestic con- 
sumption has been attempted rely on direct destruction of the 
bacteria, and others on their indirect destruction by oxidation and 
consequent removal of their food material, but combinations of the 
two methods have generally proved most effective. 

Calcium hypochlorite has recently been used with excellent success 
to sterilize contaminated water supplies, especially in emergencies, 
and several hundred cities in the United States are now applying such 
treatment, mostly in conjunction with other methods of purification. 
The action of hypochlorite depends on the fact that its solution in 
contact with the water decomposes to form, first, hypochlorous acid, 
and, second, nascent oxygen. The immediate and chief effect is 
oxidation, although slower, less thoroughly understood reactions 1 
complete the destruction of the organisms in the water. The suc- 
cessful use of this substance, and the ease with which its application 
can be controlled place it in first rank among disinfectants of water. 
If the sodium salt is used the water is softened, but if the calcium salt 
is used the hardness may be slightly increased; the effect of such 
change is, however, practically negligible, as the hypochlorite is 
applied in so small quantity. 2 The early use of hypochlorite was 
attended by numerous complaints, because lack of definite knowledge 
regarding the proper quantity of reagent resulted in overdosing and 
thus imparting to the waters a strong medicinal taste or even an odor. 
Increased knowledge of the process proved that very small amounts 
of reagent are generally adequate to insure disinfection and that no 
odors or tastes result when the hypochlorite is properly applied. 

Copper sulphate 3 has been used more often for the purpose of 
destroying algal growths than for destroying dangerous bacteria. 
Use of it may, however, leave undesirable and even harmful quanti- 
ties of copper in solution, and alkaline salts in the water may cause 
waste of the chemical by precipitating the copper at the moment of 
application. The usual method of application — towing a sack of the 
solid reagent around the reservoir — is also crude and expensive. 
Copper sulphate has nevertheless proved to be a valuable algacide 
and its use has been decidedly beneficial to some waters. 

Ozone is theoretically an ideal reagent for disinfection, as the only 
products of its complete reaction with organic matter are carbon 
dioxide and water. Considerable progress has recently been made in 
the use 1 of this reagent, and sterilization by ozone is a valuable adjunct 
to filtration in Paris, St. Petersburg, and several other European 

i U ideal, Samuel, Water disinfection by chemical methods: Eng. News, vol. 68, p. 702, 1912. 

2 Johnson, ('.. A., The purification of public water supplies: U. S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 315, 
p. 67, \<m. 

1 Moore, G. I"., and others, A symposium on the use of copper sulphate and metallic copper for the removal 
of organisms and bacteria from drinking water: New England Waterworks Assoc. Jour., vol. 19, pp. 474- 
582, 1906. 



PURIFICATION OF WATER. 29 

cities. The chief drawbacks have been the expense of manufacturing 
the ozone and the mechanical difficulties of effecting application 
without wasting the reagent. 

Ultra-violet rays have been successfully used in Europe to sterilize 
water, but the process is still in an experimental stage in the United 
States. 

SOFTENING. 

Water is softened for the purpose of removing suspended matter, 
iron, aluminum, calcium, magnesium, and sometimes sulphate, par- 
ticularly before its use in boilers. Preheating alone removes enough 
of the objectionable materials from some waters, but further treat- 
ment of others may be required. 

Many methods alleged to obviate boiler troubles consist in intro- 
ducing into the boiler with the feed water some " boiler compound" 
and subsequently removing the deposits produced by it. Many 
boiler compounds contain, in addition to considerable inert material, 
tannin or derivatives of tannic acid that cause corrosion of the boiler. 
Those that contain acetic or other acids are harmful for the same 
reason. Others contain organic material, such as glycerine, wood 
extract, or molasses, whose effects are solvent, as that of glycerine, 
or mechanical, as that of molasses. Starchy materials have also been 
employed. All such compounds are harmful because they induce 
instead of prevent corrosion and scale production or thicken and foul 
the water in the boiler. In general the introduction of reagents into 
the boiler is advisable only to correct minor troubles, and where such 
practice is necessary, because of inability to treat the supply before it 
enters the boiler, one or more of the inexpensive chemicals whose 
action and efficacy have been thoroughly established should be used. 

Several really efficient reagents are available for softening and 
removing scale-forming ingredients from water before it enters the 
boiler, the most widely used of which are lime, as caustic lime 
(Ca(OH) 2 ), and soda, as soda ash (Na 2 C0 3 ), or more rarely as caustic 
soda (NaOH). Barium carbonate (BaC0 3 ) is very efficient chemically 
for softening some bad waters, especially those high in sulphate, but 
it and other salts of barium are little used because of their cost. 
"Permutite," an artificial zeolite whose formula approaches 
2Si0 2 .Al 2 3 .Na 2 + 6H 2 0, and the iron-alum reagents have also been 
used with reputed success. 

The softening effect of lime is due to the formation of insoluble 
hydrates by reaction with certain basic radicles and the formation 
of calcium carbonate by reaction with the free carbon dioxide and 
part of the bicarbonate in the water. Caustic soda, which is some- 
times used instead of caustic lime, besides being more expensive, 
has the decided disadvantage of increasing the total dissolved alka- 
lies and consequently the danger of foaming and priming. It has 
no real advantage over a combination of lime and soda ash. Soda 



30 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 



ash is used with lime in treating some waters from which the calcium 
and magnesium are not completely precipitated by lime alone. 

The amount and nature of the reagents for softening water depend 
on the chemical composition of the water and on the method of treat- 
ment. Lime need not be added in treatment in open heaters as the 
bicarbonate radicle is decomposed by heat into free carbon dioxide, 
which escapes as a gas, and the carbonate radicle, which precipitates 
all or part of the alkaline earths. Some waters contain sufficient 
carbonate to react thus with all the calcium and magnesium and 
therefore need only be heated to purify themselves. Waters deficient 
in carbonate may be treated with soda ash before being heated. 

Some waters are so highly charged with incrusting materials that 
they can not be used profitably even after softening because the 
foaming ingredients are so greatly increased; others are so slightly 
mineralized that sufficient scale to interfere noticeably with steaming 
is not deposited except after long periods of service. Dole, 1 citing 
the findings of the committee on water service of the American Rail- 
way Engineering and Maintenance of Way Association, states that 
it is not advisable to soften waters containing more than 850 parts 
per million of nonincrusting material and much incrusting sulphates, 
but that it is generally economical in locomotive practice to treat 
waters containing 250 to 850 parts per million of incrustants and 
those containing less than the lower amount if a large proportion of 
the incrustants is sulphates. An approximate classification repro- 
duced from Dole's paper is as follows: 

Approximate classification of waters for boiler use according to proportion of incrusting 

and corroding constituents. 



Parts per million. 


Classification. 


More than— 


Not more than— 




90 
200 
430 
680 


Good. 
Fair. 
Poor. 
Bad. 
Very bad. 


90 
200 
430 
680 





METHODS OF ANALYSIS. 

RIVER WATER. 

The methods of analysis used in studying the river waters of 
Oregon are, with the minor exceptions noted in the following para- 
graphs, those described by Dole. 2 

1 Dole, B. B., The chemical character of the waters [of north-centra] Indiana]: U. S. Geol. Survey Water- 
Supply Paper 264, p. 244, 1910. 

i Dole, i:. I-,., The quality of surface waters in the United States, Pt. I: Analyses of waters east of the 
100th meridian: V. S. Geo). Survey Water-Supply Paper 236, pp. 9-26, 1909. 



METHODS OF ANALYSIS. 31 

Only 100 to 250 instead of 500 cubic centimeters of very turbid 
waters having high coefficients of fineness was taken for the deter- 
mination of total suspended matter, which was made' as usual in all 
other respects. 

Some of the waters that could not be completely clarified by being 
passed through a Gooch crucible were treated as follows: After the 
portion for the determination of suspended matter had been measured 
out, the remainder of the sample was allowed to settle for about 
one day, and the sample for total-solids determination was then 
measured out. This portion, after having been passed through a 
paper-pulp filter, was evaporated to dryness in the usual manner. 
For the filter ordinary filter paper of medium quality (S. & S. No. 
597) was thoroughly macerated in a beaker with strong hydro- 
chloric acid and then washed to remove the acid, the pulp remaining 
as a fine suspension in the water. A perforated porcelain disk was 
laid inside and over the stem of an ordinary Gooch filter tube about 
1§ inches in diameter, and suction was applied. The suspended 
pulp was then slowly poured into the funnel until a mat about one- 
sixteenth inch thick was formed. This was tamped down thoroughly, 
another layer added and tamped down, and a further small amount 
of pulp added. The last layer, which was not tamped down, served 
to aid agglomeration of finely suspended material. The filter made 
in this manner was washed thoroughly and was then ready for use. 
As many as twenty samples could be passed through the same filter 
before it became fouled or choked, and the filtered liquid was clear 
and bright. The advantages of this method are that no chemical 
reactions occur and color is not perceptibly altered, and it was adopted 
after filtration through alundum crucibles and Nordmeyer-Berkefeld 
filters had been found unsatisfactory. 

One additional treatment with barium hydrate followed by treat- 
ment with ammonia and ammonium carbonate was employed in the 
determination of alkalies, in order to insure the complete removal of 
impurities. The final evaporation and weighing of the alkali chlo- 
rides were made in a platinum dish. 

The average sodium-potassium ratio in the water of each river 
was determined at the close of the investigation on the united solu- 
tions of the alkali chlorides obtained during the progress of the work. 
The united solutions of the chlorides were repurified and were evapo- 
rated nearly to dryness in a porcelain dish after addition of a measured 
amount of platinic chloride. The residue was allowed to solidify 
on cooling and was then treated with 80 per cent alcohol, and the 
potassium-platinic chloride was caught on a filter paper. The pre- 
cipitate was dried to remove traces of alcohol and dissolved in hot 
water, and this solution was treated in the same porcelain dish with 



32 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

a drop of chlorplatinic acid and was again evaporated nearly to 
dryness and digest ed with 80 per cent alcohol. The precipitate was 
filtered out and washed with a little alcohol, and was then thoroughly 
dried at 100° C. The potassium-platinic chloride was then dissolved 
in hot water and this solution was evaporated to dryness in a clean 
platinum dish. After having been thoroughly dried at 135° C. and 
cooled, the dish and residue were weighed. The residue was again 
dissolved and the solution was passed through a filter paper, which was 
washed and then ignited in the platinum dish. The dish was cooled 
and weighed, the difference representing KjPtCl^ All determina- 
tions were made in duplicate. The method is long but gives accurate 
results. 

Fiftieth-normal sulphuric acid, standardized by titration against 
an alkali and by precipitation with barium chloride, was substituted 
for the solution of potassium acid sulphate advised by Dole for 
titrating carbonate, as there is no apparent advantage in the use 
of the acid salt. 

HIGHLY MINERALIZED WATERS. 

As many of the lake waters of Oregon are highly concentrated and 
contain determinable amounts of unusual constituents, analysis of 
them by the customary methods is not practicable, and the following 
procedure was adopted: 

Specific gravity. — Determinations of specific gravity were made 
with a Sprengel picnometer with thermometer attached. The deter- 
minations were made in duplicate, usually at 20° C, and the results 
are reported to four decimal places. 

Total dissolved solids. — A weighed amount of the liquid was evap- 
orated to dryness in a tared platinum dish, and the residue was heated 
for an hour in an air oven at 180° C. and weighed, after which the 
residue was carefully ignited to constant weight. Amounts of liquid 
were chosen that would give less than 5 grams of total ignited solids. 
Both the weight of the residue dried at 180° C. and the weight after 
ignition were recorded. 

Silica, iron, alumina, calcium, and magnesium. — Silica, iron, and 
alumina were estimated on the portion used for the determination of 
total dissolved solids, Dole's procedure 1 being followed. Calcium 
was determined in the usual manner by titration with permanganate 
solution, and magnesium was determined gravimetrically as the pyro- 
phosphate unless the amount was small, when it was titrated with a 
standard solution of uranium nitrate. 

Sulphate and alkalies. — A weighed amount of the sample was 
acidified with hydrochloric acid and the sulphate was precipitated 

» Dole, B. B., The quality of surface waters In (he United States, Pt. I: Analyses of waters east of 
Che 100th meridian: I' 8. Oeol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 23f>, pp. 9-26, 1909. 



METHODS OF ANALYSIS. 33 

and weighed as barium sulphate in the usual manner. The nitrate 
was used to determine alkalies, decrepitation of the chlorides after 
evaporation being prevented by precipitation of the concentrated 
brine with strong hydrochloric acid. Potassium was separated in 
each analysis as previously described. (See p. 31.) 

Carbonate and bicarbonate. — Because of the possible presence of 
borate in many of the highly mineralized samples, titration in the 
presence of phenolphthalein and methyl orange would not give reliable 
values for carbonate and bicarbonate, and the amounts of these radi- 
cles were, therefore, gravimetric ally determined. The apparatus con- 
sisted of a half-liter round-bottom flask, supported over a Fletcher 
burner, and fitted with a separatory funnel and a reflux condenser 
tilted at an angle of about 60° with horizontal. A train of bulbs and 
tubes was placed as follows: Calcium-chloride bulb, U-tube filled 
with glass beads and anhydrous copper sulphate, two calcium-chlo- 
ride bulbs in series, potash bulbs with a calcium-chloride guard tube, 
calcium-chloride bulb, stopcock, and tube attached to a Richards 
suction pump. The potash bulbs were of Geissler's type, the guard 
tube being behind the bulbs of the potash set, and the safe capacity of 
the apparatus when filled was about 1 gram of carbon dioxide. A flask 
containing caustic potash was attached to the separatory funnel so that 
air free from carbon dioxide could be drawn into the reaction flask. 
All joints except the two by which the potash set was connected with 
the train were cork made air-tight by repeated coatings of shellac. 
The potash set was attached by means of rubber tubing, the glass ends 
being butted close together so that as little rubber as possible might 
be exposed. The apparatus with the potash set removed was sat- 
urated with carbon dioxide, and a current of air free from carbon 
dioxide was passed through the train to remove all excess of carbon 
dioxide. The potash set, after being weighed, was placed in the train 
and a weighed sample of the water to be tested was introduced into 
the flask through the separatory funnel. A measured amount of 
1 to 4 hydrochloric acid was then cautiously introduced into the 
flask, the tube leading into the potash set was attached, a slow suc- 
tion was started, and the reaction flask was slowly heated to incipient 
boiling. It was kept at this point for 15 minutes, then the source of 
heat was removed and the apparatus was allowed to stand for half 
an hour, a slow current of air being drawn through it. The suction 
was then removed, and the potash set was placed in the balance case 
and weighed as soon as possible. The increase in weight was com- 
puted as carbon dioxidt set free from the sample. Determinations 
were made on a sample of the water and on a dried and ignited resi- 
due obtained by evaporating a sample. The difference between 
these two weights represents dissolved carbon dioxide and the carbon 

47195*— wsp 363—14 3 



34 QUALITY OF SUEFACE WATERS OF OEEGON. 

dioxide set free by the decomposition of bicarbonate on evaporation 
and heating, but as separate determinations of dissolved carbon 
dioxide were not made the entire difference has been referred to bicar- 
bonate. The error is probably trivial, for if there had been an appre- 
ciable amount of dissolved carbon dioxide it would have reacted 
with the normal carbonate in the water to produce bicarbonate. As 
normal carbonate was present it was assumed that dissolved carbon 
dioxide was absent; 

Chloride. — A weighed sample was acidified with nitric acid and 
chloride was precipitated with silver nitrate. It was considered 
unnecessary to boil the solution, and the precipitate, after being 
filtered out in a tared Gooch crucible fitted with an asbestos mat, 
was heated in an air oven at 130° C. to constant weight. Chloride 
was computed from this weight of silver chloride. 

Nitrate. — Determination of nitrate was made by the phenol-disul- 
phonic acid method after removal of chloride by means of silver 
sulphate. 

Phosphate. — Phosphate was determined according to the colori- 
metric method proposed by Woodman and outlined by Mason. 1 
Fifty grams of the water was evaporated to dryness after the addi- 
tion of 3 cubic centimeters of nitric acid. The residue was heated 
two hours in a water oven, then extracted with cold water, filtered, 
and diluted to 50 cubic centimeters in a comparison tube. Four 
cubic centimeters of a solution containing 50 grams per liter of am- 
monium molybdate was added and the well-mixed liquid was then 
compared with standard phosphate solutions which had been treated 
in the same manner. 

INTERPRETATION OF THE RESULTS OF ANALYSIS. 

INDUSTRIAL INTERPRETATION. 

Formulas for the industrial interpretation of water analyses have 
been developed by Stabler, 2 to whose articles the reader is referred for a 
full discussion of them. 

The formulas are as follows: 

A = ll + 1.79 Fe + 5.54 Al + 2.5 Ca + 4.11 Mg + 49.6 H. 

B = H + 0.0361 Fe + 0.1116 Al + 0.0828 Mg-0.0336 CO 3 -0.0165 
HC0 3 . 

C = 0.00833 Sm + 0.00833 Cm + 0.0107 Fe + 0.0157 A1 + 0.0138 Mg + 
0.0246 Ca. 

D = 0.00833 SiO 2 + 0.0138 Mg+ (0.016 Cl + 0.0118 SO 4 -0.0246 
Na-0.0145 K). 

1 Mason, W. P., Examination of water, 4th ed., p. 102, New York, 1910. 

: Stabler, Herman, The mineral analysis of water for industrial purposes and its interpretation by the 
engineer: Eng. News, vol. no, pp. 35.5-3o7, 1908. Also Some stream waters of the western United States 
with chripi er nn industrial application of water analyses: U. S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 274, pp. 
165-181, 1911. 



INTERPRETATION OF THE RESULTS OF ANALYSIS. 35 

E = 0.00931 Fe + 0.0288 A1 + 0.0214 Mg + 0.258 H + 0.00434 HC0 3 + 
0.0118 C0 2 . 

F = 0.0167 Fe + 0.0515 Al + 0.0232 Ca + 0.0382 Mg + 0.462 H- 

0.0155 C0 3 - 0.00763 HC0 3 . 

2040 
k= pi when Na — 0.65 CI is zero or negative. 

k = ^ >o a n] when Na — 0.65 CI is positive but not greater than 
0.48 S0 4 . 

£J C Q 

k = AT _ n Q9C1 — 4SSO wnen Na — 0.65C1 — 0.48SO 4 is positive. 

In these formulas A represents the cost in cents of soap at 5 cents a 
pound required to soften 1,000 gallons of the water. B represents 
the corrosion coefficient or the relative tendency to produce corrosion 
in a boiler. Stabler states that if B is positive the water is certainly 
corrosive; if B + 0.0503 Ca is negative no corrosion because of the 
mineral constituents will occur; and if B is negative but B + 0.0503 
Ca is positive corrosion may or may not occur, the probability of 
corrosion varying directly with the value (B + 0.0503 Ca). C repre- 
sents the number of pounds of scale that may be formed in a boiler 
per 1,000 gallons of feed water. D represents, similarly, the number 
of pounds of hard scale, whence the relative hardness of the scale is 

p • E represents the number of pounds of 90 per cent lime and F the 

number of pounds of 95 per cent soda ash required to soften 1,000 
gallons of water. The alkali coefficient, k, is an index of the value of 
the water for irrigation; it represents the depth in inches of water 
which on evaporation would yield sufficient alkali to render a 4-foot 
depth of soil injurious to the most sensitive crops. 

The symbols, Fe, Al, Ca, Mg, H, C0 3 , HC0 3 , Na, K, CI, S0 4 , Si0 2 , 
C0 2 , Sm, and Cm represent, respectively, the amounts in parts per 
million of iron, aluminum, calcium, magnesium, acidity (calculated 
as hydrogen), carbonate, bicarbonate, sodium, potassium, chlorine, 
sulphate, silica, free carbon dioxide, suspended matter, and colloidal 
matter (silica, ferric oxide, and alumina) found by analysis of the 
water. 

The number of pounds of ordinary soap (G) necessary to soften 
1,000 gallons of the water is obtained by dividing A by 5, whence, 

G = 2.2 + 0.4Fe + l.l Al + 0.5 Ca + 0.8 Mg + 9.9 H. 

This formula may be reduced for practical application to most 
waters of Oregon to 

G = 2.2 +0.5 Ca + 0.8 Mg. 

The cost of softening the water with an average soap can then be 
obtained by multiplying the price per pound of soap by G. In like 
manner the cost of softening the water by lime and soda ash can be 



36 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

obtained by multiplying the price per pound of the respective rea- 
gents by E and F. 

Stabler classifies irrigation waters in conformity with ordinary 
irrigation practice in the United States as follows: 

Classification of irrigation waters. 



Alkali coefficient (k). 


Class. 


Remarks. 


More than IS 


Good 

Fair 


Have been used successfully for many years without special 


18 to 6 


care to prevent accumulation of alkali. 
Special care to preA T ent gradual accumulation of alkali has gener- 


5.9 to 1.2 

Less than 1.2 


Poor 

1 Bad 


ally been found necessary except on loose soils with free 

drainage. 
Care in selection of soils has been found to be imperative and 

artificial drainage has frequently been found necessary. 
Practically valueless for irrigation. 









Whether injury would actually result from the application of a 
given water to any particular piece of land, however, depends on 
methods of irrigating, the crops grown, the character of the soil, 
conditions of drainage, and the quantity and distribution of rainfall, 
and it should be clearly understood that the alkali coefficient in no 
way takes account of such conditions. 

GEOCHEMICAL INTERPRETATION. 

The geochemical interpretation of water analysis depends on the 
geologic significance of the materials entering into solution. The 
primary rock formations yield waters containing a high percentage 
of alkalies, but sedimentary and metamorphic rocks yield waters 
containing greater proportions of the alkaline earths. Primary 
formations are usually siliceous, and neither chloride nor sulphate is 
prominent in them. Many secondary formations are rich in salts of 
these strong acid radicles, though they also contain much carbonate. 
Solutions of the alkaline substances from silicate rocks are high in 
carbonate. When a surface water collects in a basin to form a land- 
locked lake dissolved matter is gradually concentrated and salts are 
precipitated in accordance with their respective solubilities. A 
great proportion of the alkaline earths is usually removed from the 
solution during early stages of concentration; magnesium chloride, 
however, is one of the last materials to be deposited from a chloride 
water. Lake waters from volcanic regions produce carbonate 
waters on concentration, those from sedimentary regions may pro- 
duce sulphate waters, and the final stage of continued concentration 
and deposition of salts produces the chloride waters, or time brines. 

Palmer 1 has developed a system of geochemical classification of 
natural waters based on the above facts, and his paper on this sub- 
ject is an important contribution to the science. His classification 

i Palmer, Chase, The geochemical interpretation of water analyses: U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 479, 1911. 



INTERPRETATION OF THE RESULTS OF ANALYSIS. 



37 



depends primarily on the relation between the radicles in water and 
the types of rock from which they are dissolved, and, secondarily, 
on the concentration of the waters. The radicles determined by 
analysis are grouped as (1) alkalies (sodium and potassium), (2) 
alkaline earths (calcium and magnesium), and (3) hydrogen (free 
acids) . 

The weak acid radicles (chiefly carbonate and bicarbonate) together 
are considered to measure the property of "alkalinity," and the 
strong acid radicles (chiefly chloride, nitrate, and sulphate) to meas- 
ure the property of "salinity." As the alkalies are characteristic of 
the older or primary formations alkalinity or salinity due to their 
salts is called primary alkalinity or primary salinity. As alkaline 
earths are characteristic of secondary rocks alkalinity or salinity due 
to them is called secondary alkalinity or secondary salinity. Salinity 
due to free acids is called tertiary salinity. 

In applying his classification Palmer has used the reaction coeffi- 
cients of the radicles, as calculated by Stabler, 1 which are the 
quotients obtained by dividing the valences of the radicles by their 
respective molecular weights. The reaction coefficients of the radi- 
cles commonly reported in water analyses are shown in the following 

table : 

Reaction coefficients of common radicles. 



Positive radicles. 



Ferrous iron (Fe) 
Aluminum (Al)_. 

Calcium (Ca) 

Magnesium (Mg). 

Sodium (Na) 

Potassium (K)... 
Hydrogen (H) . . . 



Reaction 
coefficients. 



0. 0358 
.1107 
.0499 
.0822 
.0435 
.0256 
.992 



Negative radicles. 



Carbonate (C0 3 ) 

Bicarbonate (HC0 3 ) 

Sulphate (S0 4 ) 

Chlorine (CI) 

Nitrate (N0 3 ) 



Reaction 
coefficients. 



0. 0333 
.0164 
.0208 
.0282 
.0161 



If the amount of a radicle obtained by analysis is multiplied by its 
reaction coefficient the product is the reacting value of the radicle. 
The quotients obtained by dividing the reacting value of each radicle 
by the sum of all the reacting values represent the percentage react- 
ing values, from which Palmer's classification is made. He divides 
waters into five classes according to the. relative numerical values of 
the various groups of percentage reacting values. If a, h, and d 
represent, respectively, the percentage reacting values of the alkalies, 
alkaline earths, and strong acids, any one of five numerical conditions 
may exist ; d may be less than a ; equal to a ; greater than a and less 
than a + b; equal to a + b; or greater than a + b. He computes the 
properties of reaction of each class according to the formulas following. 



* Stabler, Herman, Some stream waters of the western United States, with a chapter on The industrial 
application of water analyses: U. S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 274, p. 167, 1911. 



38 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

Formulas for properties of reaction. 



Class III. 
d greater than a; d less than a-\-b. 

2a Primary salinity. 

2 (d—a) Secondary salinity. 

2 (a-\-b—d). . . .Secondary alkalinity. 

Class IV. 
d equal to a-\-b. 

2a Primary salinity. 

26 Secondary salinity. 



Class I. 

d less than a. 

2d Primary salinity. 

2 (a— d) Primary alkalinity. 

26 Secondary alkalinity. 

Class II. 
d equal to a. 

2a or 2d Primary salinity. 

26 Secondary alkalinity. 

Class V. 

d greater than a+6. 

2a Primary salinity. 

26 Secondary salinity. 

2 (d—a—b). . . .Tertiary salinity (acidity). 

Palmer found that surface waters belong chiefly to the first three 
classes and that sea water and brines form the greater number in 
Class IV. 

SAN FRANCISCO BAY DRAINAGE BASIN. 
GOOSE LAKE. 

GENERAL FEATURES. 

Goose Lake occupies a long, wide valley in south-central Oregon 
and northeastern California. Its valley is bordered on the east by 
Warner Mountains, which merge into gentler slopes on the north and 
west. 

The water surface of Goose Lake was formerly slightly higher than 
at present and the lake discharged directly into the North Fork of Pit 
River. Such discharge is said to have occurred for a short time in 
1869 and again in 1881 . It is possible that considerable seepage water 
passes from it into Pit River. The annual precipitation at Lakeview, 
at the north end of the lake, is 17 inches. In Warner Mountains it 
probably reaches 25 inches, and on the low divide between Goose Lake 
and Lost River it is intermediate in amount. Practically no rain falls 
in the summer months. Timber grows on the high lands, but the in- 
terior valley is practically treeless. The valley lands are fertile and 
capable of producing abundant crops where sufficient moisture exists. 
Dry fanning has been practiced in the valley with considerable success, 
but irrigation produces greater and more certain crops. Several 
irrigation projects have been constructed or are contemplated, some 
to use water from surface streams and some to be supplied from the 
lake itself. 

CHARACTER OE THE WATER. 

A sample of the water of Goose Lake was collected May 12, 1912, by 
J. T. Hansen, on the west side of the lake, about 60 feet from shore, 



KLAMATH RIVER. 



39 



near the Oregon-California boundary. The depth of the water at the 
sampling point was 3 feet, and the sample was collected 1 foot below 
the surface; the lake was rough and turbid at the time. 

The remarkable content of phosphate suggests that the soils of the 
region are well supplied with available phosphorus, but it may be 
caused by the wild fowl which abound in this region. The principal 
material in solution is bicarbonate of soda, which is almost 75 per cent 
of the total dissolved matter. The ratio of potassium to sodium 
(1 to 10) is low, and the calcium-magnesium ratio (9 to 1) is high. 
The water is poor, and its use for irrigation should be restricted to 
carefully selected soils, in which artificial drainage should probably 
be introduced. 

Mineral analysis of the water of Goose Lake. 
[Analyst, Walton Van Winkle.] 



Percentage 
of anhy- 
drous 
residue. 



Silica (Si0 2 ) 

Iron(Fe) 

Calcium (Ca) 

Magnesium (Mg) 

Sodium (Na) 

Potassium (K) 

Carbonate radicle (C0 3 ) 

Bicarbonate radicle (HCO3) 

Sulphate radicle f S0 4 ) 

Chlorine (CI) 

Nitrate radicle (NO3) 

Phosphate radicle (P0 4 ) . . . 
Total dissolved solids 




4.9 

.0 

1.8 

.2 

34.5 

3.3 

40.7 



4.4 

9.9 

.2 

.1 



NORTH PACIFIC COAST DRAINAGE BASINS. 

KLAMATH RIVER. 

GENERAL FEATURES. 

Klamath River rises in Upper Klamath Lake in southern Oregon 
and winds southwestward across northern California to the Pacific 
Ocean. The upper part of its basin is in the central Oregon plateau 
and the lower part is in Klamath Mountains. Upper Klamath 
Lake is fed by Anna River, which rises in springs near Crater Lake, 
Wood River, which joins Anna River near the Upper Klamath 
Marsh, and Williamson River, with its tributary Sprague River, 
which rises in the mountains of the Fremont National Forest. The 
outflow of the lake passes through Link River into Lake Ewauna, 
and thence outward as Klamath River. The river is connected 
with Lower Klamath Lake by a strait, the direction of flow through 
which depends on the relative stages of river and lake. Large swamps 
border the lakes. Irrigation is necessary for proper agricultural 
development in the valley, as precipitation is deficient, being only 
12 inches at Klamath Falls. In the mountainous regions, however, 
the precipitation is copious. Most of the moisture falls as snow in 
winter, and the summers are arid. 



40 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 



Many large springs issue from the valley floor. One throws a 
4-inch jet of cold water several inches above the surface of an arm 
of Pelican Bay in front of Harriman Lodge, where the lake is about 
2 J feet deep. (See PL 11,-4.) Another larger spring discharges from the 
ground at old Fort Klamath. Some of the springs are hot, indicating 
very deep origin, but most of them are cold and only slightly mineral- 
ized, are of surface origin, and are produced by waters that seep 
through the porous lavas from the high Cascades or Winter Ridge 
and gather into well-defined underground streams to reappear above 
the surface in the valleys. 

The elevation of the surface of Upper Klamath Lake was 4,140 
feet in 1906, and that of the outlet of Link River, into which it 
empties, 4,080 feet. The drainage area above Keno, Oreg., which 
includes the basin of Lower Klamath Lake, is 3,150 square miles. 

Klamath Falls, the only important settlement, is a town of 2,800 
population on Link River and is the headquarters for the Klamath 
project of the United States Reclamation Service. 



CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 

Analyses of the water of Link River near Klamath Falls, made 
during 1905 and 1906 for the United States Reclamation Service, 
under the direction of W. H. Heileman, though already reported," are 
included herewith for completeness. 

Partial analyses of water from Link River at county bridge near Klamath Falls, 1905-6. 
[Parts per million except as otherwise designated.] 



Dates. 


Cal- 
cium 
(Ca). 


Mag- 
ne- 
sium 
(Mg). 


Sodium 

and po- 

tassium 

(Na+iK) 


Car- 
bon- 
ate 
radi- 
cle 
(C0 3 ). 


Bicar- 
bonate 
radicle 
(HC0 3 ). 


Sul- 
phate 
radi- 
cle 
(S0 4 ). 


Chlo- 
rine 

(CI). 


Ni- 
trate 
radi- 
cle- 
(N0 3 ). 


Sus- 
pend- 
ed 
mat- 
ter. 


Dis- 
solved 
solids. 


Mean 
dis- 
charge 
(sec- 
ond- 
feet). 


June 15, 16, 17 









9.2 


80 
66 




29 

8 





32 
48 
28 


34 

30 
42 
16 
36 
30 
46 
33 
42 
30 
23 
31 


214 

88 

102 

116 

134 

116 

123 

114 

94 

124 

100 

98 

82 

101 

110 

128 

107 

103 

96 

96 


1,970 


June 19-24 








1,850 


June 20 b 










June 20 <" 




















June 20 d 




















Dec. 25, 26, 27, 28 . 

























69 
77 
54 
64 
64 
64 
51 
54 
65 
65 

'""'65 
65 
72 
72 


12 

10 

13 

10 

9 

8 

9 


11 

6 

3 

5 

5 

5 

5 

10 

5 

7 

7 

5 

7 

24 

20 


0.09 
.22 
.22 
.22 
.22 
.13 
.09 
.04 
.04 
.04 
.04 
.04 
.04 
.04 


i,620 


Jan. 11 








1,800 


Feb. 7 








1,920 


Feb. 21 








2,040 


Mar. 5 








2,040 


Mar. 16 








2,310 


Apr. 2 








2,740 


Apr. 18 








3,770 


Julv 2 


12 


6 


19 
19 
22 
19 
19 
25 
16 


2,980 


July 16 


2,520 


Aur. 1 

Aug. 15 


14 
12 
12 
11 
13 


6 
6 
6 
6 
5 


1,800 
1,440 


Oct. 16 

Nov. 12 


1,150 
1,180 
1,390 







a Stabler, nerman, Some stream waters of the western United States: U. S. Geol. Survey Water- Supply 
Paper 274, p. 54 . 1911. 
6 90 feet from initial point for gaging. 
c 160 feet from initial point for gaging. 
d 230 feet from initial point for gaging. 



U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 



WATER-SUPPLY PAPER 363 PLATE II 




A. LARGE SPRING IN PELICAN BAY, UPPER KLAMATH LAKE. 
(See p. 40.) 




B. WATER-GOUGED SECTIONS AND BEACH SHOWN ON PROFILE OF ROCK NEAR FORT ROCK. 

(See p. 116.) 



KLAMATH RIVER. 



41 



The analyses indicate that there is little change in mineral content 
of the water throughout the year. The analysis for June 15, 16, 
and 17, 1905, appears abnormal, and the sample was probably faulty. 
The average mineral content is 107 parts per million, and the water 
is sodic carbonate. It is a good boiler water and is well suited for 
application to land of any type. Results of analyses of water from 
the spring in Pelican Bay and from Wood River, tabulated below, 
indicate no unusual features. The spring water is similar to the sur- 
face waters of the region. The water of Wood River is of the type 
usual for the region of the Columbia River basalt. Statements of 
analyses of the water of Lost River and of Lower Klamath Lake are 
also given. Lost River empties into Tule Lake, which is believed to 
discharge underground into Pit River. The basin of the lake is sepa- 
rated from Klamath basin by a very low divide and lies in the same 
big depression. 

Mineral analyses of water in Klamath Basin. 



Silica (Si0 2 ) 

Iron(Fe) 

Calcium (Ca) 

Magnesium (Mg) 

Sodium (Na) 

Potassium (K) 

Carbonate radicle (C0 3 ) 

Bicarbonate radicle (HCO3) 

Sulphate radicle (S0 4 ) 

Chlorine (CI) 

Nitrate radicle (N0 3 ) , 

Total dissolved solids , 



Parts per million. 



37 
.2 
5.7 
2.0 

,7.2 

.0 

28 
7.6 
.5 
.06 

81 



25 
.15 

7.4 
2.7 

4.7 

.0 
44 
3.6 
.25 
Tr. 
69 



19 
14 
56 
31 
16 
225 
14 
25 



289 



31 

16 
85 
49 
20 
341 
13 
46 



428 



21 
20 
71 

32 

18 

295 

16 

28 



23 

o5.2 

21 

27 
6.1 
1.7 
&.0 
233 
7.4 
3.2 



351 i220 



Percentage of anhydrous residue. 



49.9 
.3 

7.7 
2.7 

> 9.7 

18.6 



10.3 
.7 
.1 



38.2 

.2 

11.3 

4.1 

7.2 

33.1 



5.5 
.4 
.0 



6.6 

4.9 

fl9.6 

(10.9 

44.4 



4.9 

8.7 



7.3 

3.7 

19.8 

11.4 

43.9 



3.2 
10.7 



6.0 
5.7 

20.2 
9.1 

46.4 



4.6 
8.0 



11.0 

2.5 

10.0 

12.9 

2.8 

.8 

55.0 



3.5 
1.5 



a Fe 2 3 +Al 2 3 . 



& Combined C0 3 reported by analyst recomputed to HC0 3 by writer. 



1. Wood River at bridge near Fort Klamath; collected Aug. 26, 1912, and analyzed by Walton Van 
Winkle. 

2. Spring in Pelican Bay, Upper Klamath Lake; collected Aug. 25, 1912, and analyzed by Walton Van 
Winkle. 

3. Lower Klamath Lake, T. 41 S., R. 9 E. 

4. Lower Klamath Lake, three-eighths of a mile west of center of sec. 35, T. 48 N., R. 2 E. 

5. Lower Klamath Lake, one-fourth of a mile east of center of sec. 17, T. 47 N., R. 3 E. 

(Analyses 3, 4, and 5 by A. T. Sweet and S. G. McBeth; U.S. Dept. Agr. Field Oper. Bur. Soils, p. 1412, 
1908.) 

6. Lost River. Analysis by A. L. Kniseley, U. S. Dept. Agr. Ann. Rept. Irr. and Drainage Invest., 
p. 264, 1904. 

The water of Lost River differs from most waters of central Oregon 
in that it contains relatively large amounts of the alkaline earths, 
possibly derived from the deposit of " chalk" that lies close to the 
surface over most of the basin. This chalk is reported to be a mix- 
ture of calcium carbonate, siliceous volcanic ash, and diatomaceous 
earth containing considerable soluble alkaline material. 1 In view of 
the latter part of this statement it is remarkable that the soluble 
alkalies are not present in the water in greater quantity. Some of 

1 Sweet, A. T., and McBeth, S. G., Soil survey of the Klamath project, Oreg.: U. S. Dept. Agr. Bur. 
Soils Field Oper. 1908, p. 1385. 



42 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

the characteristics of water flowing from igneous rocks are, however, 
retained by the water, for the reacting value of the alkalies is in ex- 
cess of that of the strong acid radicles. 

The water of Lower Klamath Lake is much more strongly concen- 
trated than that of its influent, Link River. The concentration of 
the lake water differs greatly at different places, as a result of evapo- 
ration and local causes. As the direction of flow through the long 
strait connecting Lower Klamath Lake with Klamath River de- 
pends on the relative elevations of river and lake surfaces, the water 
of the lake is always more greatly concentrated than the water of 
Klamath River, and the mineral content is probably greater at the 
south than at the north end. 

The water is of fair quality for irrigation, but land to which it is 
applied should be well drained to prevent accumulation of alkali. 

CRATER LAKE. 
GENERAL FEATURES. 1 

Crater Lake lies in a geologically recent caldera occupying the site 
of a once lofty volcanic peak, which has been named Mount Mazama, 
in the midst of the Cascade Range, about 55 miles northeast of Med- 
ford. The rim of the caldera is 7,000 to 8,000 feet and the lake sur- 
face was 6,175 feet above sea level in 1908. The inner slope of the rim 
bears in some places a sparse growth of pine, but in many others its 
walls, here and there fringed by steep talus slopes, drop sheer to the 
water's edge. The surficial area of the lake is approximately 2 1 square 
miles, and its drainage basin is only about 6 square miles larger. The 
greatest depth of water is 1,996 feet, and a cinder cone projects more 
than 760 feet above the surface at the western extremity of the lake to 
form Wizard Island. Precipitation is more than 70 inches a year, being 
possibly as great as 100 inches, and occurs chiefly as snow in winter. 
Evaporation is less than 55 inches, and this, with loss by percolation, 
almost completely balances the inflow, there being no surface outlet 
to the lake. Some of the water may find its way by percolation into 
Rogue River, but more of it probably goes southeastward, appearing 
as springs in the drainage basin of Klamath River. 

CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 

As the loss by percolation is less than half the loss by evaporation, 
analyses of the water of the lake might be expected to give chemical 
evidence of concentration. That the analysis really shows concen- 
tration almost identical with that of other surface waters of the region 
is explained, however, by the fact that no sedimentary materials are 
exposed, the andesites, dacites, and basalts forming the basin of the 
Lake being nearly insoluble in cold water and consequently incapable 

i A-bstracted from Diller, J. S., Crater Lake National Park, Oreg., TJ. S. Dept. Int., 1912. 



ROGUE RIVER. 



43 



of rapidly increasing its content of mineral matter. The concentra- 
tion of chloride, great compared with that of other materials, indicates 
the concentrated character of the water. As the published analyses 
of rocks indicate that almost no chloride exists in the formations of 
the lake basin the high percentage of that radicle in the water may be 
due almost entirely to accumulated " cyclic" chlorine precipitated 
with the rain and snow. The unexpectedly high percentage of sul- 
phate is possibly caused by solution of sulphur that remained in the 
bottom of the caldera in a more or less oxidized condition at the cessa- 
tion of active volcanism. The slight excess of the reacting value of the 
strong acid radicles over that of the alkalies strengthens the assump- 
tion that the sulphate may have come from oxidation of sulphur or 
sulphides. Possibly the first waters in the caldera were acid and have 
become neutralized by reaction with the rock material. Otherwise 
the excess of strong acids over alkalies is a remarkable circumstance, 
as the water can have come into contact only with volcanic rock 
material and hence should contain greater proportion of alkalies. 

Mineral analysis of water of Crater Lake. 
[Analysis by N. M. Finkbiner.] 



Silica (Si0 2 ) 

Iron(Fe) 

Calcium (Ca) 

Magnesium (Mg) 

Sodium (Na) 

Potassium (K) 

Carbonate radicle (CO3) 

Bicarbonate radicle (HCO3) 

Sulphate radicle (SO4) 

Chlorine (CI) 

Nitrate radicle (NO3) 

Phosphate radicle (PO4). - . 
Total dissolved solids 



Milligrams 
per liter. 



Percentage 
of anhy- 
drous 
residue. 



18 


22.4 


.02 


.0 


7.1 


8.9 


2.8 


3.5 


11 


13.7 


2.2 


2.7 


.0 


20.9 


34 


(a) 


11 


13.7 


11 


13.7 


.38 


.5 


.01 


.0 


80 





a HCO3 computed to CO3. 
Note.— Collected Aug. 27, 1912, by M- Mecklem about a mile from shore at a depth of 6 feet 

ROGUE RIVER. 



GENERAL FEATURES. 

Rogue River is formed by three principal forks that flow from the 
Cascade Mountains and unite near Prospect, Jackson County, Oreg. 
North Fork, the main stream, has its origin in springs on the sides of 
Mount Mazama and the peaks west of it. Much of the spring water 
is probably seepage from Crater Lake, the porous lava of the caldera 
walls being well suited for the formation of seepage channels. All the 
springs can not so originate, however, as several (Lightning Spring, 
elevation 6,750 feet, for example) lie considerably higher than the 
lake itself. Middle Fork and Lower Fork rise among the Cascade 



44 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

Mountains south of Crater Lake and unite before joining the North 
Fork below Prospect. The general elevation at the headwaters of 
Rogue River is about 6,000 feet, though isolated peaks reach 9,000 
feet or more. Mount McLaughlin, on the divide between the Klamath 
and the Rogue basins, attains an altitude of 9,760 feet. 

Below the junction of the forks the river takes an extremely tortu- 
ous though generally westerly course through the northern spurs of 
Klamath Mountains, discharging into the Pacific Ocean at Gold 
Beach. The total drainage area is 5,080 square miles. The river 
hugs the southern base of Rogue River Mountains throughout its 
lower course and receives most of its tributaries from the south. 

The drainage basin is rough and mountainous and the upper stream 
affords many important power sites. A heavy growth of timber covers 
the headwater region, and extensive but less dense forests clothe much 
of the lower basin. 

Rainfall is abundant at the source and near the mouth but is defi- 
cient in the middle valleys. At Gold Beach the average annual pre- 
cipitation is 86 inches; at the headwaters it is 70 to 100 inches or 
more; and at Ashland and Grants Pass, in the middle valley, it is 
27 and 33 inches, most of which occurs in winter. This middle valley 
is fertile and produces excellent crops when irrigated. It is especially 
suitable for fruit growing, the principal fruits of the valley being 
apples and pears. 

Grants Pass, Medford, and Ashland are the chief cities of the drain- 
age basin, Grants Pass alone being directly on Rogue River. 

The headwaters of the river expose dacites, andesites, and basalts, 
probably overlying the early Tertiary sediments that outcrop in the 
valley. The middle course is over Cretaceous and earlier sediments. 
Exposures of serpentines, limestones, schists, etc., indicate that wide- 
spread metamorphosis has occurred. The lower course is largely 
through pro-Cretaceous schists and Eocene sandstones. 

CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 

Samples of water from Rogue River were collected by F. H. Farrar 
at the highway bridge 250 feet below the dam of the power house at 
Gold Ray, H miles below Tolo. A gaging station is maintained at 
the same place, above which the drainage basin comprises 2,020 
square miles. 

The total mineral content of the water does not vary greatly, but 
the proportions of the individual constituents vary considerably, 
sulphate 4 , chlorine, and calcium being particularly erratic. The water 
is soft and is excellent for use in boilers, requiring no reagents to be 
used with it to prevent cither scale formation or corrosion. The chief 
scale-forming material is silica, but this will be prevented from form- 
ing a resistant incrustation by the carbonate scale and suspended 
matter that will bo deposited with it. 



ROGUE RIVER. 



45 



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46 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

TJMPQUA RIVER. 
GENERAL FEATURES. 

Umpqua River is formed by the junction of two principal forks 
flowing from the Cascade Mountains in the extreme eastern part of 
Douglas County, Oreg. North Fork rises in Diamond Lake, at an 
elevation of 5,300 feet above sea level, and flows generally westward; 
South Fork rises on the slopes of Abbot Butte and Old Bailey, 
flows southwestward nearly to the town of Riddles, and then, wind- 
ing northward, joins North Fork north of Roseburg. The main 
river proceeds in a northerly direction to the town of Elkton and 
then flows westward in a sinuous course to Winchester Bay. The 
drainage area comprises 4,000 square miles, of which about 80 per 
cent is densely forested. The valleys are narrow and the agricul- 
tural land is restricted to narrow strips near the streams. The gen- 
eral elevation of the headwater region is about 6,000 feet, but some 
peaks rise to 8,000 or 9,000 feet above sea level. The gradient of the 
upper stream is high, and wonderful possibilities for power develop- 
ment exist. Precipitation in the headwater region is 100 inches or 
more, occurring largely as snow in the winter months. About 30 
inches of rain falls annually at Roseburg, the principal city of the 
basin, and probably as much as 60 inches near the mouth of the river. 
The seasonal distribution is poor, practically no rain falling in the 
valleys in July and August. Irrigation is necessary for the best agri- 
cultural results in the valley, but little has yet been practiced. 

The river rises in the lavas of the Cascade Range and flows in its 
middle and lower course through sediments, most of which have been 
referred to the Eocene epoch. Basalts, rhyolites, and andesites com- 
pose the greater part of the lava formations, which are bordered by 
metamorphic rocks, such as metagabbros and serpentines, which in 
turn give place to the Eocene sandstones, shales, and limestones of 
the middle and lower river. 

CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 

The chemical composition of the water of Umpqua River is of 
interest as indicating the character of waters flowing through a 
densely forested region receiving a heavy rainfall and draining 
Eocene sandstones and later lavas or altered lavas. 

Samples of water were collected daily from the river at Smiths 
Ferry, 4 miles below Elkton. A gaging station is maintained by the 
(irological Survey at this point, above which the drainage basin com- 
prises 3,680 square miles. Analyses of 10-day composite samples were 
made from August 1 to December 8, 1911, and monthly composites 
were analyzed thereafter. 



UMPQUA RIVER. 



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48 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

The water changes in quality very little from season to season, for 
the forests prevent rapid and excessive erosion following heavy rains 
and keep the run-ofT distributed to some extent. There is thus no 
great accumulation of transportable disintegration products of rock 
material during dry periods, but leaching occurs more or less con- 
tinuously. The character of the water is shown in the table on 
the preceding page. 

The water is silicic and calcic carbonate and is harder than that of 
Rogue River, but it can be used in boilers without prior treatment. 
Sedimentation of the water to remove turbidity before introduction 
into the boiler will reduce the amount of scale-forming matter almost 
one-half but will probably result in the deposition of a harder silicate 
scale. The water is nonfoaming and noncorrosive and is excellent 
for irrigation and for most industrial uses. Its content of organic 
matter is rather high because of the introduction of decomposition 
products from the forests of the basin. The content of chlorine is 
probably nearly normal for the region. Considerable chlorine from 
the ocean is introduced by rain, and more may be introduced by 
spring waters. Human or animal pollution is slight, however, and 
little chlorine can be considered to come from that source. 

SILETZ RIVER. 
GENERAL FEATURES. 

Siletz River is typical of the streams originating among the sedi- 
mentary rocks of the Coast Range. It rises in the western part of 
Polk County, at an elevation of about 3,000 feet above sea level, and 
flows southwestward to the broad valley near Siletz, then turns 
northward and follows a general northwesterly course to the 
Pacific. Its length is approximately 50 miles and its drainage area 
320 square miles. 

The topography is rugged. Rainfall over the basin is copious, 
being 75 to 80 inches at the mouth and probably 150 inches or more 
at the headwaters. A dense growth of timber covering most of the 
drainage basin serves to retard surface erosion and to lessen the 
force of the floods. The gradient of the stream is steep, and fluctua- 
tions in stage are sudden and large, rises of a foot an hour for twelve 
or more hours being not uncommon. The river at flood stage dis- 
charges about 1,000 times the minimum run-ofT, and the increase in 
volume in 24 hours is often more than 100 times the initial discharge. 

Eocene formations are exposed in the upper valley and later 
Tertiary along the lower course of the river. Shales and soft sand- 
stones are most generally exposed, the rocks of the upper valley being 
usually bettor cemented than the more recent sediments of the lower 
valley, which in places are only partly consolidated sands and ooze. 



SILETZ RIVER. 49 

Exposures of volcanic rock have been found in the headwater region, 
but the extent of these is unknown. 1 

CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 

Samples of water were collected daily by John Kennta at the 
gaging station one-half mile above the new steel bridge near the 
Siletz-Toledo stage road. The area of the basin above this point is 
220 square miles. 

The water differs somewhat in character from that of either Rogue 
or Umpqua rivers, though it does not show clearly its origin among 
secondary formations. The content of alkaline earths is scarcely 
sufficient to combine with the strong acids — inconclusive evidence as 
to the character of the formations in the upper basin. The water is 
siliceous and carbonate in type, and alkalies are only slightly in excess 
of alkaline earths. The content of suspended matter is remarkably 
small, considering the character of the discharge and the softness of 
the rocks near Siletz. The formations above Siletz are possibly older 
and more firmly cemented than those observed farther downstream 
by the writer, and this is made more probable by the fact that the 
region near Black Rock, just east of the divide, exposes much harder 
shales and sandstones than those of the middle Siletz Valley. Dense 
forest growths aid in preventing the washing of soil and rock powder 
into the streams, and the waters are turbid only after excessively 
heavy rains. Chlorine averaged 1.2 parts per million more than in the 
water of Umpqua River at Elkton, the difference probably represent- 
ing the normal difference in cyclic chlorine. Sulphate and calcium 
are important constituents of the water. It seems possible that the 
presence of dense forests, the continual washing away of soluble rock 
material, and the decaying organic matter in regions of large rainfall, 
such as the coastal slope of Oregon, tend to increase the alkalinity 
and to destroy the geochemical value of the analysis. 

The water is excellent for all industrial uses. It is nonscaling 
but may under some conditions become corrosive. If it were used 
for a municipal supply its content of free carbonic acid would 
probably lead to corrosion of iron mains and service pipes and to the 
frequent delivery of "red water" from household boilers. The water 
is suitable in quality for use in paper mills, but the discharge of the 
stream is too " flashy' ' and its minimum flow too small to make its 
use desirable. 

1 Personal communication from J. B. Winstanley, Portland, Oreg. 
47195°— wsp 363—14 4 



50 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 



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QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 51 

COLUMBIA RIVER DRAINAGE BASIN. 
GENERAL FEATURES. 

The drainage basin of Columbia River comprises about 259,000 
square miles in northwestern United States and southwestern Canada. 
Its eastern border is the crest of the Rocky Mountains, its north- 
western limit is among the peaks of the Cascades, and its lower 
stretch receives drainage from the Coast Range. The basin is di- 
vided among several States and British Columbia, as follows : 1 

Square miles. 

Oregon 55, 370 

Washington 48, 000 

Idaho 81, 380 

Montana 25, 000 

Nevada 5, 280 

Wyoming 5, 270 

British Columbia 38, 700 

Columbia River, the trunk stream of the system, rises in Columbia 
Lake, in the eastern part of the Kootenai district in British Colum- 
bia, flows northwestward to the fifty-second parallel, then, turning 
abruptly southward, it nearly retraces its former course, passing 
through a series of narrow lakes until it crosses into Washington 
near the Idaho line. After a slight westerly deflection it resumes its 
progress southward to the Oregon-Washington line, where it swings 
west, and finally discharges through an estuary into the Pacific 
Ocean. The navigable stretches on the main stream aggregate 760 
miles and on the entire system 2,136 miles. 

The important tributaries of the Columbia are : 

Entering from north and west. 

Kettle River. 
Sanpoil River. 
Okanogan River. 2 
Methow River. 
Chelan River. 
Entiat River. 
Wenatchee River. 2 
Yakima River. 2 
Klickitat River. 2 
White Salmon River. 
Lewis River. 
Kalama River. 
Cowlitz River. 



Entering from south and east. 
Kootenai River. 
Clark Fork. 
Colville River. 
Spokane River. 
Snake River. 3 
Walla Walla River. 
Umatilla River. 3 
Willow Creek. 
John Day Rivef . 3 
Deschutes River. 3 
Hood River. 
Willamette River. 3 
Clatskanie River. 



The drainage basin of this system includes all topographic features, 
from the bold peaks of the Cascade Range and the "v^esb slopes of 

i TJ. S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 272, p. 64, 1911. 

2 For analyses see Van Winkle, Walton, The quality of the surface waters of Washington: U. S. Geo!. 
Survey Water-Supply Paper 339, 1914. 

3 Studied in connection with this investigation. 



52 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

the Rocky Mountains to the flat sandy plains of the "Big Bend 
Country" in Washington. Much of the area is forested, and al- 
though extensive lumbering has been carried on the percentage of 
forest lands has been only slightly decreased. 

Precipitation is unevenly distributed. Summer rainfall is small in 
most of the region. In some places, as along the coastal strip and 
at the summits of the Cascade Range, the average annual precipita- 
tion is 100 inches or more, but it decreases rapidly eastward from the 
mountains, and in the arid lands of eastern Oregon and the low 
valley of central Washington it is 9 inches or less. The climate of 
the coastal belt is mild, the summers being cool and the winters 
warm. In the valleys between the Coast and Cascade ranges the 
climate is still mild but less even. In the Oregon Plateau and much 
of the interior region high summer and low winter temperatures pre- 
vail, and on the elevated headwater regions the climate is extremely 
rigorous. 

The only generally important industries of the region are lumbering 
and agriculture. Some mining is carried on in the headwater 
regions, especially in the Rocky Mountains. 

The headwaters of the tributaries rising in the Rocky Mountains 
expose ancient strata, largely metamorphic and ranging from Pro- 
terozoic quartzites to Jurassic and Triassic or even younger sedi- 
ments. Post-Cambrian intrusives cover large areas in Idaho and 
southern British Columbia, but the greater part of the basin, including 
most of the valleys of Snake and Columbia rivers in the United 
States, is covered by the thick Columbia River basalt, of Tertiary 
age. The soil of the basin is generally rich and fertile but in the 
plateau region is usually lacking in humus. The soil of the coastal 
strip is heavier and has been reported to be sour in places. The soil 
covering the basaltic plateau is "volcanic ash," or pumiceous sand 
and disintegrated basalts, and is rich in lime but poor in phosphorus 
and lacking in humus. 

SNAKE RIVER. 
GENERAL FEATURES. 

Snake River heads near the Continental Divide in Yellowstone 
National Park, western Wyoming and northeastern Idaho. It flows 
in a gr^at southward-hanging loop across Idaho, then northward 
through a steep canyon to its junction with the Clearwater at Lew- 
iston, Idaho. It there turns sharply and flows soutlrwostward to its 
confluence with the Columbia below Pasco, Wash. Its drainage area 
comprises 109,000 square miles and includes regions differing greatly 
in topography, structure, and climate. The headwater region is 
rough and mountainous, and the canyon between Idaho and Oregon 
traverses a remarkably broken and distorted country. 



SNAKE EIVEK. 53 

The river crosses the Columbia River basalt throughout its lower 
course and is there confined within a steep-walled canyon about 
2,000 feet deep. According to Russell, 1 solid rock is exposed only in 
the canyon walls, which in many places rise nearly vertically from 
the talus slopes at their base. The soil is fine and deep and is prac- 
tically free from pebbles, and where only a sparse desert growth 
exists it is easily swept up by the winds into great dunes. The depth 
and richness of the soil, however, render it eminently suitable for 
agriculture, and though the plateau has a forbidding desert-like 
aspect, it is capable of producing abundant crops when properly 
watered. 

Precipitation is heavy in the mountain portion and is mostly snow, 
but in the lower valleys it amounts to only 8 to 10 inches a year. 
The temperature of the central valleys ranges from about 100° or 
higher in summer to considerably below zero in winter. 

Power plants are in operation at American Falls, Shoshone Falls, 
and at the Minidoka dam on Snake River and on Payette and Boise 
rivers, tributaries of the Snake. There are many other sites along 
Snake River where large amounts of power might be developed. 

CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 

Samples of water from Snake River were collected for this inves- 
tigation by A. J. Reeves, gage reader, at the gaging station main- 
tained by the United States Geological Survey at the power house 
about 200 yards below the wagon bridge at Weiser, Idaho, and 1 
mile below the mouth of Weiser River. The drainage area above 
this point comprises 74,900 square miles. 2 

The water is hard and will deposit a little soft scale in boilers — 
slightly less than 2 pounds per 1,000 gallons of water. It can be 
softened with excellent results by adding lime in the proportion of 
about three-quarters of a pound per 1,000 gallons of water or by 
preheating in open heaters. With proper attention the water will 
not foam in boilers. 

The water is excellent for irrigation, for which it is extensively 
used. If it is applied to lands containing small amounts of " black 
alkali," they will lose some of that undesirable constituent and will 
receive white alkali and lime by the same reaction that occurs when 
land plaster is used. 

1 Russell, I. C, A reconnaissance in southeastern Washington: U. S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 
4, p. 15, 1897. 
2 Estimated by U. S. Weather Bureau. 



54 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 



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QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 55 



OWYHEE RIVER. 

GENERAL FEATURES. 



Owyhee River rises on the east slopes of the Tuscarora Mountains 
in Elko County, Nev., flows northward into southwestern Idaho, 
then northwestward into Oregon, where it turns abruptly to the 
northeast, and finally joins the Snake near Nyssa. The basin com- 
prises an area of 11,100 square miles, which is 4,500 feet in general 
elevation, and except at the headwaters forests are lacking. Pre- 
cipitation averages 6 to 9 inches, the larger part occurring as snowfall. 
Most of the low-water flow of the river is used for irrigation. 

The headwaters of the river lie among Quaternary deposits, but 
the greater part of the upper and middle river traverses the Columbia 
River basalt. The lower river flows through a wide valley overlain 
by late Tertiary lake and river deposits, probably of the Payette 
formation. 

The stream affords a striking example of a large river draining an 
extremely arid area in which the predominating formations are 
volcanic rocks of Tertiary age. 



CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 



Samples of water were collected by Gilder Watson from Owyhee 
River at the county bridge, half a mile from Owyhee post office and 
3 miles above the mouth of the stream. A gaging station is main- 
tained at the same point, above which the drainage basin comprises 
11,100 square miles. Six miles above the gaging station a large ditch 
removes more than 200 second-feet of water from the river during 
irrigation seasons. The entire low-water flow is used for irrigation 
and the flow at the sampling station at such times is only seepage 
water. The river is sometimes frozen over. The character of the 
water is not affected noticeably by these conditions. 

The concentration of dissolved material in Owyhee River varies 
greatly. In August, 1911, a maximum mineralization of 472 parts 
per million occurred, and in April, 1912, a minimum of 88 parts per 
million. 

The water has a large amount of temporary and some permanent 
hardness. It is noncorrosive but might cause foaming in boilers if 
improperly used. It is excellent for irrigation. 

Waters draining volcanic formations are not so well suited for 
irrigation as are waters flowing from sediments, as they contain rela- 
tively large amounts of alkaline carbonates and hence, if sufficiently 
concentrated, tend to increase the " black alkali" content of the soil. 
The waters of eastern Oregon are generally not sufficiently mineral- 
ized to cause trouble in this manner, but wherever irrigation is prac- 
ticed in the State care should be taken to insure adequate drainage, 
as both water and soil yield black alkali, which becomes concentrated 
in spots if the drainage is poor. 



56 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 



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QUALITY OF SURFACE WATEES OF OREGON. 



57 



MALHEUR RIVER. 



GENERAL FEATURES. 



Malheur River rises in the eastern part of Harney County, flows 
northward until it is joined by Middle and North forks, then 
northeastward, discharging into Snake River at Ontario. The total 
drainage area is 4,150 square miles. The headwaters reach an eleva- 
tion of more than 5,000 feet, and the mouth of the river is about 
2,000 feet above sea level. Timber grows sparsely in the headwater 
region, but the valley proper is in general a sagebrush desert. Pre- 
cipitation ranges from 16 inches in the upper reaches to 10 inches 
at Vale, near the mouth of the river. 

Malheur River was formerly the outlet for Malheur Lake, but the 
aridity of the region has increased, the old channel has been closed 
by lava flows, and the lake now occupies one of the minor depressions 
of the Great Basin. 

Basaltic or rhyolitic rocks exposed along the upper reaches of the 
Malheur give place in the lower valley to sediments of late Tertiary 
age. It is entirely possible that the lake beds of the Payette forma- 
tion extend far into Malheur Valley, but no detailed geologic studies 
have been made, and such assumption is without definite supporting 
evidence. 

CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 

Samples of water were collected by the United States Reclamation 
Service from March 26 to December 4, 1905, from Malheur River at 
the gaging station maintained by the United States Geological Survey 
at a highway bridge near Vale, and were analyzed at Berkeley, Cal., 
under the direction of Thomas H. Means. The drainage area above 
Vale comprises 4,860 square miles. The following tables 1 show 
the results of these analyses : 

Relative amount of substances in solution in water from Malheur River near Vale, 1905. 





c/5 

<o 

P< 

B 

03 

>> 

'3 

"o 



f 


w 
(-. 
03 

& . 

% o 

z 

m 

.S3 
P 


Radicles 


in percentage of dissolved solids. 


Limiting dates of composite. 


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a 

03 


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S 


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03 

m 


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.a 

«- 




13 

O 

03 
M 

2 


Mar. 26- Apr. 21 


22 
18 
20 
26 
27 
26 
28 
17 


182 
210 
254 
342 
424 
514 
322 
283 


8.8 
11 
10 
11 

13 

13 
11 


4 - .2 

4.3 
4.3 
5.0 
4.7 
4.1 
4.7 
4.2 


14 
14 
16 
18 
17 
18 
16 
16 


0.00 
.00 
.00 

2.3 
.00 
.00 
.00 
.00 


59 

70 
68 
61 
63 

62 

56 


12 
16 
17 
19 
19 
16 
21 
19 


4.6 

6.2 

8.3 

7.6 

8.0 

12 

8.7 

8.1 


0.05 


Apr. 23-May 20 


.04 


May 21- June 17 


.05 


June 18-July 15 


.01 


July 16- Aug. 12 


.03 


Aug. 13-Sept. 21 


.01 


Sept. 22-Nov. 9 


.01 


Nov. 10-Dec. 4 


.03 






Mp.an . 




316 
316 


11 
35 


4.4 
14 


16 
51 


.29 
.0 


63 
200 


17 
54 


7.9 

25 


.03 


Average composition (parts per million) 




,09 



1 Stabler, Herman, Some stream waters of the western United States: U. S. Geol. Survev Water-Supplv 
Paper 274, p. 57, 1911. 



58 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 



Partial analyses of water from Malheur Hirer near Vale, 1905. 
[Parts per million except as otherwise designated.] 



Dates. 



Mar. 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31 

Apr. 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 

Apr. 9, 10, 11,12, 13, 14 

Apr. 17,18,20,21 

Apr. 23, 24, 25, 29 

Apr. 26 

Apr. 30, Mav 1 , 2, 3, 5 

May 11,12,13 

May 14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 20 

Mav 17 

May 21,22,23 • 

May 31, June 1, 2, 3 

June 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 

June 11, 12, 13, 15, 16, 17 

June 18, 19, 20, 21 , 22, 23 

June 25, 20, 27, 28, 29, 30, July 1. 

July 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 

July 10, 11,12, 13, 14, 15 

July 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22 

July 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29 

July 30, 31, Aug. 2, 3, 4, 5 

Aug. 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11,12 

Aug. 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19 

Aug. 20, 21, 22, 23, 30, 31, Sept. 1 

Sept. 3, 6, 7, 8,9 

Sept. 10, 11, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21 

Sept. 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, Oct. 7. 

Oct.S,9, 10, 11,12, 13, 14 

Oct. 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21 

Oct. 22, 23, 24, Nov. 6, 7, 8, 9.. . . 

Nov. 10, 11,12,13, 14, 15,16 

Nov. 17, 18, 19, 20, 

Nov. 26, 27, 30, Dec. 1, 3, 4 



4 






6 


6 

9 




9 
7 
9 

12 




43 


15 









o 



99 
99 
90 
94 
106 
131 
112 
132 
165 
181 
180 
169 
149 
165 
189 
207 
170 
244 
240 
242 
229 
279 
292 
290 
186 
230 
195 
196 
186 
178 
166 
165 
155 



13 
8 
6 

10 
9 
32 
11 
10 
16 
18 
29 
14 
16 
14 
29 
29 
21 
32 
37 
36 
37 
411 
41 
40 
42 
35 
29 
27 
23 
20 
17 
21 
22 



105 

220 

96 

36 

50 

70 

34 

78 

26 

30 

6 

840 

1,670 

412 

306 

52 

30 

72 

90 

24 

54 

62 

24 

18 

68 

36 

48 

18 

20 

44 

70 

106 

10 



195 
162 
166 
162 
200 
240 
184 
220 
278 
288 
344 
252 
256 
264 
312 
366 
290 
390 
400 
498 
436 
442 
462 
4 Mi 
486 
406 
398 
368 
340 
318 
254 
336 
34.0 



6.1 
6.1 
6.0 
5.5 
5.3 
5.3 
5.1 
4.5 
4.3 
4.3 
4.2 
4.5 
4.8 
4.8 
4.4 
4.2 
3.9 
3.6 
3.7 
3.6 
3.6 



3.8 
3.9 



4.3 



230 

250 

090 

708 

600 

575 

436 

206 

154 

153 

126 

250 

370 

310 

170 

122 

75 

24 

31 

21 

19 

16 

12 

16 

19 

35 

49 

57 

85 

105 

115 

127 

150 



Solids (tons 
per day). 






349 

742 

282 

69 

81 

109 

40 

43 

11 

12 

2 

567 

1,670 

345 

141 

17 

6 



1 

3 

3 

1 

1 

3 

3 

6 

3 

5 

12 

22 

36 

4 



647 

546 

488 

310 

324 

373 

217 

117 

115 

118 

117 

170 

255 

221 

143 

120 

78 

25 

33 

28 

22 

19 

15 

21 

25 

38 

53 

57 

78 

90 

79 

115 

138 



The water varies greatly in total mineralization and carries much 
suspended matter. During the period covered by the investigation 
suspended matter ranged from 6 to 1,670 parts per million. Increases 
in run-off are generally accompanied by increases in suspended matter 
and followed by decreases in total minerahzation ; the data indicate 
that the relation between discharge and suspended matter is definite, 
but they are insufficient to determine any mathematical relation. 
The water is sodic carbonate in type and is hard but can be softened 
by heating. It is excellent for irrigation. 

POWDER RIVER. 



GENERAL FEATURES. 



Powder River rises in the Blue Mountains, in the western part of 
Baker County, flows eastward and northward through Baker City 
to North Powder, then turns toward the southeast and finally dis- 
charges into Snake River in the east-central part of Baker County. 



POWDER RIVER. 



59 



Its total drainage area is 1,660 square miles, of which only the head- 
water regions are forested. The middle and lower valleys are semi- 
arid, and irrigation is necessary for their proper agricultural develop- 
ment. The general elevation of the headwater region is 6,000 feet; 
the average elevation of the valley is 3,300 feet. Precipitation 
ranges from 30 inches on the mountains to 15 inches at Baker City 
and less in the lower valleys. The topography in the upper reaches 
of the river is rough and broken, but the lower valleys are broad and 
flat. 

Powder River rises among Paleozoic argilhtes, limestones, and 
lavas of the Blue Mountains, and flows through later Tertiary lake 
beds, lavas, and late river deposits in its middle and lower course. 
North Powder River, its chief tributary, rises among intrusive rocks — 
granites, granodiorites, gabbros, diabases, and serpentines — and flows 
through similar igneous and metamorphic rocks to its junction with 
the Powder. 

CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 

Samples of water from Powder River were collected by M. B. Fisk, 
at the gaging station of the United States Geological Survey at Thief 
Valley, 7 miles east of North Powder. The drainage basin above 
this point comprises 826 square miles. The water is hard and will 
produce a little medium or hard scale in boilers. It can be softened 
by the use of lime or by being heated. It is well suited for irrigation, 
and this is the chief use to which it will be put in the immediate 
future. 

The following table shows the character of the water of Powder 
River above the mouth of the North Powder and below Baker City, 
as determined by the Bureau of Soils of the Department of Agri- 
culture : 

Analyses of the water of Powder River a 



Parts per million. 



Percentage of an- 
hydrous residue. 



Calcium (Ca) 

Magnesium (Mg) 

Sodium (Na) 

Potassium (K) 

Carbonate radicle (C0 3 ) 

Bicarbonate radicle (HC0 3 ) 

Sulphate radicle ( S O <) 

Chlorine (CI) 

Total dissolved solids 



25 
22 

416 

14 

11 

72 

952 

5 

1,517 



11 

54 

8 

14 

166 
17 
10 

287 



1.7 

1.5 

28.1 

1.0 

.7 

2.4 

64.2 

.3 



a Analyses by A. L. Knisely, U. S. Dept. Agr. Bur. Soils Fifth Rept. Field Oper., p. 1162, 1903. 

1. Powder River, 1 mile north of Baker City. 

2. Powder River above North Powder; center of sec. 25, T. 6 S., R. 39 E. 



60 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 



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GRANDE RONDE KIVER, 61 

The analyses on page 59 represent water suitable for irrigation. 
The reported differences in total mineral content and in the relative 
proportions of the different materials in solution are surprising, as 
there is little surface inflow between the two points of collection 
and the soil map indicates no unusual condition in the region. The 
change from secondary salinity to primary alkalinity between 
Baker City and North Powder, shown by the analyses, would not be 
expected, as the river traverses late Tertiary sediments almost 
entirely throughout this distance. As both samples were received x 
at the laboratory at or about the same time it is improbable that 
the analyses represent the water at radically different stages. In 
the absence of other information it may be assumed that the sample 
of higher content, which is labeled in some of the records of the 
Bureau of Soils "irrigation water," was really seepage water. 

GRANDE RONDE RIVER. 

GENERAL FEATURES.. 

Grande Ronde River rises in the Blue Mountains in the southern 
part of Union County, Oreg., flows northeastward and joins Snake 
River near Zindel, Wash. A large part of its drainage area of 3,950 
square miles is forested. 

The country drained is rugged, and the mountains of the head- 
water regions are among the highest in the State. From Blue and 
Wallowa mountains, which he at an average elevation of 8,000 feet 
above sea level, the tributary valleys converge to the central Grande 
Ronde Valley 2,700 feet above sea level. This valley is fertile and 
produces large amounts of wheat. The principal tributary streams 
are Joseph Creek, Wallowa River, and Catherine Creek. The river 
flows for most of its course in a canyon, which at its mouth is about 
1,000 feet deep. 

Precipitation ranges from about 35 inches in the headwater region 
to 19 inches at La Grande. The greater part occurs as snowfall, 
and irrigation is necessary to produce crops other than drought- 
resistant grains. 

The headwaters of the river are in the post-Cambrian intrusives 
of the Blue Mountains and in Columbia River basalt, and the lower 
course is entirely through lava rocks. 

CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 

Samples of water were collected from Grande Ronde River at 
the lower end of Grande Ronde Valley by John Graham, reader of 
the Survey gage, at the county highway bridge on the road from 
Elgin to Wallowa, within the city limits of Elgin, above the mouth 
of Clark Creek and below the mouth of Indian Creek. The drainage 
basin above this point comprises 1,350 square miles. 

1 Personal communication from Jhe Bureau of Soils. 



62 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 



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WALLOWA RIVER. 63 

The water is used in Grande Ronde Valley chiefly for irrigation, 
for which it is well suited. It is characterized by temporary hard- 
ness only, and the amount of scale deposited by it in boilers will be 
small. It is nonfoaming and noncorrosive and can be softened by 
being heated or by the use of small quantities of lime. 

Seasonal fluctuations in quality are not great, although the river 
has a large seasonal variation in discharge. The high turbidity may 
be partly due to local conditions, as there is much corrosion of the 
banks at the sampling station during high water. High water is 
usually accompanied by a high coefficient of fineness and low water 
by a low coefficient. The cause for the high color of the water is not 
entirely apparent. The water is siliceous and calcic carbonate and 
is characterized by primary alkalinity resulting from the igneous 
character of the rocks of the basin. 

WALLOWA RIVER. 

General features. — Wallowa River, the principal tributary of Grande 
Ronde River, rises in Wallowa Lake in the Wallowa Mountains, flows 
in general northwest, and joins the Grande Ronde near Elgin, Oreg. 
Its basin comprises 870 square miles of country, much of which is 
forested. The altitude of Wallowa Lake is approximately 4,340 
feet, and the general elevation of the headwaters is 8,000 feet above 
sea level. 

The little that is known of the geology of this region indicates the 
prevalence of Tertiary and later effusive rocks. 

Character of the water. — Samples of water were collected daily from 
Wallowa River near Elgin from August 1 to 13, 1911, and near 
Joseph from August 18, 1911, to August 15, 1912. Those collected 
near Elgin were taken by A. M. Boswell, gage reader, at the United 
States Geological Survey gaging station in Wallowa Canyon, at 
Minam post office, just below the mouth of Minam River and 12 
miles from Elgin, but the results of the analysis have not been in- 
cluded in this report. The samples collected near Joseph were taken 
by John Martin, gage reader, at the United States Geological Survey 
gaging station, about 300 feet below the controlling dam at the outlet 
of Wallowa Lake and about 1J miles above Joseph. As the storage 
afforded by the lake greatly reduces the seasonal variation in the 
quality of the water, monthly composites were analyzed. 



64 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 



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WALLOWA KIVER. 65 

The analytical data are of considerable scientific interest, as they 
indicate that the prevailing opinion regarding the rocks of this region 
is erroneous, the water not being such as would come from volcanic 
formations. The water is characterized by secondary salinity, the 
proportion of calcium being exceptional for a surface water of the 
Northwest. The ratio of magnesium to calcium is lower than that 
of any other surface water in the United States whose mineral com- 
position is known to the author and is a ratio that might be found 
in water draining limestones fairly free from magnesium. In this 
respect it resembles ground water from Tertiary calcareous forma- 
tions in Georgia. Sulphate is present in greater quantity than 
would be expected in drainage from limestone, unless considerable 
gypsum also were present, and the amount of alkalies in excess of 
that which can combine with chlorine indicates that the basin con- 
tains some secondary rocks. 

The water is in many respects similar to that of Thames River at 
Kew, England, as analyzed by Graham, Miller, and Hofmann. 1 This 
is remarkable, as the Thames rises in Cretaceous oolitic formations 
and traverses only Cretaceous and Tertiary and possibly some Juras- 
sic sediments. Its water differs from that of Wallowa River in having 
a greater preponderance of strong acid radicle over the alkalies, indi- 
cating that the formations are more wholly secondary than those in 
the Wallowa basin. The formations at the headwaters of Wallowa 
River contain considerable chloride; the water of Thames River 
derives its alkalies from the country rock, as the small amount of 
chlorine in it proves that neither cyclic sodium nor solution of com- 
mon salt from the rocks produces the alkali. The decomposition of 
silicate rocks probably sets free much of the alkaji. 

The composition of the water of Wallowa River indicates that in the 
small part of the basin above Joseph (47 square miles) calcareous 
sediments are exposed in large amount, and that possibly good depos- 
its of limestone may occur there. The meager information at hand 
when this investigation was begun indicated that only Tertiary lavas 
and other volcanic rocks, and no Paleozoic, Triassic, or Jurassic rocks 
were exposed in the upper basin. The pronounced calcareous nature 
of the water, however, showed the error of these assumptions, and 
inquiries sent to mining engineers and others brought forth the follow- 
ing information : 2 A fault extending northwest and southeast, with 
a throw of 1,000 to 1,500 feet, crosses the Wallowa in the SE. \ sec. 29, 
T. 3 S., R. 4o E. This meets another fault in the southern edge of 
the SW. | sec. 34, T. 3 S., R. 45 E., which extends southward to Imnaha 

1 Clarke, F. W., The data of geochemistry: tr. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 491, p. 85, 1911. 

a Personal communication from A. H. Rudd, county surveyor, Joseph, Oreg. ; confirmed by personal 
communication from O. C Finkelnburg, Baker, Oreg., and by hasty field inspection by Prof. P. Von 
Eschen in the summer of 1913. 

47195°— wsp 363—14 5 



66 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

River. A third fault, also extending north and south, meets the one 
first mentioned in the SW. J sec. 31, T. 1 S., R. 43 E. The area 
included within these faults contains sedimentary rocks winch rest 
on diorite. Limestone occurs in patches and in places shows a thick- 
ness of 500 feet or more. Other minor exposures of calcareous rocks 
have been found in Wallowa County but not in Wallowa River basin. 
In places the streams have cut entirely through the limestone, which 
almost everywhere crowns the ridges. 

The analyses indicate that the water is good for domestic use, is 
noiifoaming and noncorrosive, and will deposit a small amount of 
soft scale in boilers. Preheating or the addition of a little lime will 
greatly soften the water. It is very well suited for irrigation and 
will tend to correct any trouble from black alkali. Land irrigated 
with it should improve in quality if proper rotation and fertilization 
is practiced. The quality of the water undergoes little seasonal 
variation. 

UMATILLA RIVER. 

GENERAL FEATURES. 

Umatilla River rises in the Blue Mountains, hi the northeastern 
corner of Umatilla County, flows generally westward, and discharges 
into the Colufnbia at the town of Umatilla. It receives several 
tributaries above Pendleton, the largest being Wild Horse Creek. 
Below Pendleton its only important affluent is Butter Creek. 

The headwater regions are well forested, but the valley lands are 
largely treeless prairies. The valley lands are used chiefly for wheat 
raising, but a 20,000-acre irrigation project completed by the United 
States Reclamation Service at Hermiston will permit other products 
to be grown. Rainfall ranges from 30 inches in the Blue Mountains 
to 9 inches at the mouth. 

The drainage basin is completely overlain with the Columbia River 
basalt, and the rocks of the lower valley are mostly hidden by the 
sandy products of their decay. 

CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 

Samples of water were collected daily from Umatilla River at 
Gibbon during August, 1911; at Yoakum, from August 31, 1911, to 
August 14, 1912; and at Umatilla from August 1, 1911, to August 14, 
1912. The samples at Gibbon were collected by Walter Swart, gage 
reader, at the gaging station 1 mile below Gibbon, about 1^ miles 
below the mouth of Meacham Creek, and 2 miles above the mouth 
of Squaw Greek.' As the river at this point is subject to high floods, 
which greatly shift the channel, sampling was discontinued at the 
end of one month, and collections were thereafter made at Yoakum 
i>\ John Doherty and the Bond Ranch Co.'s local representative, 



UMATILLA RIVER. 67 

the water being taken from the river at the Yoakum highway bridge, 
1J miles east of Yoakum station of the Oregon Railroad & Naviga- 
tion Co., and 18 miles below Pendleton. A few ditches withdraw 
water above Yoakum, but practically no return water enters the 
stream above the gaging station, the basin above which comprises 
1,200 square miles. The collections at Umatilla were made by C. A. 
Holder, gage reader, at the gaging station about 1J miles above 
Umatilla, about one-half mile below the diversion dam of the Oregon 
Land & Water Co.'s canal, and one-fourth mile above the headgate 
of the Brownell ditch. The drainage basin above this point com- 
prises 2,130 square miles. The entire summer flow of the river is 
diverted between Yoakum and Umatilla and the summer flow at the 
latter place represents only return water from irrigation. Several 
stretches between Echo and the mouth of the river are dry in summer. 

As little tributary water reaches the river between Yoakum and 
Umatilla, a comparison of the composition of the water at the two 
places gives valuable information regarding the effect of irrigation 
on the quality of the water. The water at Umatilla is not greatly 
dissimilar from that at Yoakum during winter. In summer, however, 
difference in quality is marked. Comparison of the figures represent- 
ing the percentage composition of the waters minus the silica content 
shows that though there is little difference in the relative quantity of 
the basic radicles there is a decided difference in the content of acid 
radicles. While the water is passing from Yoakum to Umatilla its 
relative content of carbonate is decreased and its relative content of 
sulphate is increased. This change seems to indicate a measurable 
increase in the alkali content of the soils due to the use of the water 
for irrigation. Yet as the discharge of the river at Umatilla is only 
slightly less than at Yoakum but the mineral content of its water at 
Umatilla is almost double that at Yoakum, the alkali content of the 
soil is actually decreased by irrigation. 

It is true of this river, as it is of San Gabriel River, and to a less 
degree of Santa Ana River, in California, 1 that the greatest effect of 
irrigation, indicated by the composition of the drainage water, is an 
increase in total mineral content, changes in character of the water 
being insignificant compared with the increase in concentration 

The water of the Umatilla at Yoakum is well suited for industrial 
use. Its hardness is not great and is temporary in character. It is 
nonfoaming and noncorrosive and is excellent for irrigation. At 
Umatilla the water is twice as concentrated and is not so well suited 
for use in boilers. Lime is an excellent corrective for either water. 

i Van Winkle, Walton, and Eaton, F. M., The quality of California surface waters: U. S. Geol. Survey 
Water-Supply Paper 237, pp. 98-107, 1910. 



68 



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70 



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QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 71 

JOHN DAY RIVER. 
GENERAL FEATURES. 

John Day River rises in the Blue Mountains along the eastern border 
of Grant County, at an elevation about 16,000 feet above sea level, 
flows westward to the west edge of Wheeler County, then turns north- 
ward and joins the Columbia 28 miles above The Dalles. Its head- 
waters cover a large area and are divided into North Fork, Middle 
Fork, Upper John Day River, and South Fork. The total area 
drained is 7,800 square miles, and only the upper region is forested. 
The average rainfall is 24 inches at the headwaters and 10 inches at 
the mouth. The valley lands and uplands require irrigation for the 
production of crops, and though several projects are contemplated 
along the stream little irrigation has yet been practiced. 

The river heads in the post-Cambrian intrusives and metamorphic 
Paleozoic rocks of the Blue Mountains and traverses a basin in which 
the overlying rock is chiefly Columbia River basalt. The river and 
its tributaries have cut through the lava sheet in most places, and 
the rocks exposed in the canyon and valley walls are largely the 
stratified deposits of the John Day formation of Tertiary (Oligocene) 
age. This formation is usually referred to as a lake deposit, but, as 
pointed out by Merriam, 1 it is composed largely of tuffs, ashes, and 
rhyolite flows, with relatively small amounts of sands and gravels. 
The fossils obtained seem not to indicate a lacustrine origin for the 
tuffs, ashes, etc., and only in the upper sediments have aquatic fossils 
other than rodents been obtained. Probably the predominant de- 
posits are partly lacustrine and partly eolian. 

CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 

Analyses of the water of John Day River near Dayville and at 
McDonald were made during the period covered by the investiga- 
tions. Samples were collected daily by K. F. MacRae, gage reader, 
at the gaging station located at a private wagon bridge on MacRae's 
ranch, 3 miles above Dayville and 3 miles above the mouth of the 
South Fork of John Day River. The drainage basin above these 
points measures 1,000 square miles. The samples were united in 
monthly composites before analysis. The samples at McDonald were 
collected by William Murray and Wm. G. McDonald at McDonald 
ferry and post office, 16 miles above the mouth of the river and half 
a mile below the mouth of Rock Creek. The drainage basin above 
this point comprises 7,800 square miles. 

i Merriam, J. C, A contribution to the geology of the John Day Basin: Univ. California Dept. Geology 
Bull., vol. 2, pp. 299-302, 1901. 



72 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 



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74 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

The water at the mouth is similar in character to that at Dayville. 
There is a small increase downstream in total mineral content and in 
proportion of sulphate, but the other differences are insignificant. 
The water is characterized by primary alkalinity and is siliceous and 
calcic carbonate in type. It does not shpw evidence of its contact 
with sedimentary material, but as the sediments of the basin are 
only partly lacustrine and as the lake deposits were derived largely 
from igneous rock, the soluble material in them would be similar in 
nature to the primary rocks of the region. The water is well suited 
for irrigation. 

DESCHUTES RIVER. 
GENERAL FEATURES. 

Deschutes River rises in large lakes near the summits of the 
Cascade Range in Klamath and Crook counties. Its two main 
branches, East Fork and West Fork, unite near the town of Lava, 
whence their combined waters flow in general northward, joining 
the Columbia 15 miles above The Dalles. Crooked, Metolius, Warm 
Springs, and White rivers are the principal tributaries, and all 
except Crooked River drain eastern slopes of the Cascades. The 
general elevation of the headwater region in the Cascade Mountains 
is 5,000 to 6,000 feet above sea level, and that of the upper portions 
of Crooked River basin slightly exceeds 4,000 feet. The basin 
comprises about 9,180 square miles, of which about 2,920 square 
miles is in Crooked River basin. The headwater regions of the 
Deschutes and its principal tributaries are forested; the rest of the 
basin is timberless. Annual precipitation ranges from 100 inches on 
the summits of the Cascades to 15 inches at Bend, 20 inches in the 
upper part of Crooked River basin, 9 inches at Prineville, and 11 
inches at Warm Springs. The range in temperature is great, but 
there is sufficient time between last and first frosts to make the region 
suitable for agriculture. The streams do not as a rule freeze hard 
in winter, owing to the large proportion of water that enters from 
springs. 

The drainage basin lies entirely within the borders of the Columbia 
River basalt, which consists of layers of porous lavas interstratified 
with tuffs and pumiceous sand, and therefore favors seepage and 
the formation of springs. In fact, direct surface run-off is slight, 
and, owing to the conserving effect of the percolation, the dis- 
charge of middle and lower Deschutes River is remarkably constant. 

The upper river flows over the top of the lava, but a short distance 
below Bend it enters a canyon which, in its lower course, it has 
excavated to a depth of over 800 feet. The tributary streams have 
also cut steep-walled canyons, but the plateau has in general the 
appearance of a gently rolling prairie. 



DESCHUTES EXVEIt. 75 

The slight rainfall and the great amount of seepage make the 
uplands and valleys desert-like in appearance. The soil is fertile, 
however, and with proper irrigation large tracts can be brought under 
cultivation. The upper and middle Deschutes Valley is the site of 
the most important irrigation development of the State. Deschutes 
River is also remarkable for its many large rapids and falls, which, 
with its uniform discharge, afford great opportunities for power 
development. 

CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 

Sampling stations were maintained on Deschutes River at Bend 
and at Moody. At the former place Mr. C. A. Stanburrough, engi- 
neer of the city pumping plant, furnished daily samples of the river 
water, which were combined into monthly composites for analysis. 
The area of the drainage basin above Bend is 1,530 square miles. 
At Moody, Mr. S. N. Arnold, engineer for a local irrigation project, 
engaged collectors, who took daily samples from the river at the 
gaging station of the United States Geological Survey, 1§ miles above 
the mouth of the river. The basin above this point comprises about 
9,180 square miles. These samples were combined in sets of 10 
for analysis. The results of the analyses of water from these two 
stations are shown in the preceding tables* 

The water of the Deschutes at Bend is excellent for boiler and 
laundry use and requires no softening. The water is also well suited 
for irrigation, and the fertility of the soil of the basin lands and their 
excellent natural drainage make irrigation projects in this region par- 
ticularly attractive. There is little pollution of Deschutes River 
above Bend, and any sewage discharged into the stream becomes very 
diluted, but the water at Bend is not safe for drinking unless it is first 
purified. Slow sand filters, covered to prevent freezing, can be used, 
and sand of suitable quality for them may be obtainable from the 
pumiceous deposits of the locality. 

The water of the river at Moody is more turbid than that at Bend. As 
rainstorms were frequent during the period of investigation the recorded 
turbidity of the water is probably higher than the normal, which might 
be determined by further study. The turbidity indicates with consid- 
erable regularity the conditions of precipitation in the drainage basin. 
A thaw accompanied by rain in the middle of January, 1912, is indi- 
cated by a sudden great rise in turbidity. Slight precipitation the later 
part of February checked the slow decrease in turbidity but was not 
sufficient to cause noticeable increase of it. In April the effect of an- 
other severe rainstorm was registered by a sudden change in turbidity. 
Little precipitation occurred after that until the later part of July, 
when there was a storm which apparently caused a marked increase 
in the turbidity of the water though it had no appreciable effect on 
the stream flow. 



76 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 



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78 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

Much of the suspended matter in the water of the Deschutes at 
Moody comes from surface wash from Crooked River basin and 
glaciers in White River basin. The data indicate that much of 
the effect of the turbidity of White River is masked by the dilu- 
tion of its water when it is mixed with that of the Deschutes. 
Crooked River exerts a stronger influence on the water of the Des- 
chutes during spring, when its discharge and its turbidity are high. 
The effect of this tributary is shown in the analyses of the water at 
Moody in the continual presence of suspended matter and also, to less 
extent, in the character of the dissolved constituents. 

The water of Deschutes River at Moody is more highly mineralized 
than that at Bend, the total amount of dissolved matter being 15 to 30 
parts per million greater and the proportions of carbonate and calcium 
somewhat greater. Though these increases can not be directly traced 
to Crooked River, they are probably due in large part to its influence. 
The volume of Crooked River below Prineville is augmented by the 
flow from Opal Springs, which discharge about 150 second-feet. The 
character of the water of these springs is unknown. The rivers enter- 
ing the Deschutes below the mouth of Crooked River are probably 
less highly mineralized and dilute the waters of that river. Were it 
not for this dilution the water at Moody would probably have an 
average mineral content between 108 and 110 parts per million. 

The water of Deschutes River is siliceous and sodic carbonate. At 
Bend it is typical of water in a semiarid area flowing from basaltic 
rocks overlain with pumiceous sand. The water at Moody is some- 
what more mixed in type but maintains the general character of a 
water from lava formations. 

CROOKED RIVER. 
GENERAL FEATURES. 

Crooked River has its source in a number of warm springs near the 
outlet of a broad valley in the southeastern corner of Crook County. 
It flows northward for about 20 miles, then, joined by Beaver Creek, 
it follows a sinuous course westward and empties into the Deschutes 
below the mouth of Opal Canyon. Its total length is about 125 miles. 
Its drainage boundaries are well denned except on the southeast, 
where the uplands merge gradually into the arid undrained region of 
the Great Sandy Desert of Oregon. The principal tributaries are 
Bear, Beaver, and Ochocho creeks. 

Throughout much of its course the river flows through a narrow 
valley or canyon. Below Prineville this canyon has been cut to a 
total depth of about 800 feet. The plateau in which the valley is 
sunk is a basaltic table-land sloping gradually on the north to the Blue 
Mountains and on the south to the Pauline Ridge. Several dam sites 
and natural reservoir sites on the stream can be utilized to conserve 
flood waters for irrigation. 



CROOKED RIVER. 79 

The principal rocks of the valley are basaltic lavas, tuffs, and uncon- 
solidated sediments of volcanic origin. Tertiary sediments, probably 
of the John Day formation, are exposed along the tributary Camp 
Creek. Much of the soil of the basin is composed of the disintegrated 
lava rocks. It does not show strong alkalinity except in the southern 
and southeastern parts, where the vegetation indicates the presence 
of carbonate of soda. 

About 20 per cent of the drainage basin is forested. The valley 
proper contains little timber of value; in the mountain regions, how- 
ever, are extensive pine forests, almost all of which are included in 
National forests. 

The average annual precipitation at Prineville is 9 inches. It is 
much greater in the mountain regions and is well distributed through- 
out the year, but over a large part of the basin the average is probably 
not more than 6 or 7 inches. Owing to natural decrease of summer 
flow and also to withdrawals for irrigation, Crooked River and several 
of its tributaries are dry during much of the summer. 

Cattle raising and grain culture are the chief occupations in the 
valley. Prineville, a town of about 1,000 population, situated about 
43 miles from the mouth of the river at the junction of Ochocho 
Creek, besides being the county seat, is an important trading and 
agricultural center. 

CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 

Samples of water for this investigation were collected daily by 
S. S. Stearns from Crooked River at the gaging station on Stearns's 
ranch, 5J miles southeast of Prineville. The drainage basin above 
this point comprises 1,990 square miles. During 1911 analyses were 
made of composite samples, each representing one month's collections, 
but in 1912 analyses of 10-day composite samples were made. One- 
half of the total discharge of the stream during the period of the 
investigation occurred in the 50 days from March 28 to May 16, 1912. 
The flow during August, 1911, was almost nothing. Two periods of 
sudden increase in discharge occurred, one during a thaw early in 
January, 1912, and the other following rains in May, 1912, after 
which the discharge very rapidly decreased. The use of the water 
of the river for irrigation partly accounts for its very irregular 
discharge. 

The total mineralization of the water varies greatly, ranging from 
about 100 to almost 400 parts per million. The water is used prin- 
cipally for irrigation, for which it is well suited, but is rather hard for 
laundry or boiler use. The upper part of the basin contains much 
material of strongly alkaline nature. As rainfall is deficient rock 
decay is progressing more rapidly than soil leaching, and conse- 
quently the lands of the "high desert" region probably are deteriorat- 
ing in quality. Much of the dissolved matter in the water of Crooked 
River is derived from the salts of this region. 



80 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 



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81 



The following analysis of a sample of water from Crooked River 
below Paulina indicates that the water there is similar in character 
to that at Prineville: 

Mineral analysis of water from Crooked River at bridge near Paulina. 



Silica (Si0 2 ) 

Iron (Fe) 

Calcium (Ca) 

Magnesium (Ms;) 

Sodium and potassium (Na+K) 

Carbonate radicle (CO3) 

Bicarbonate radicle (HCO3) 

Sulphate radicle (S0 4 ) 

Chlorine(Cl) 

Nitrate radicle (N0 3 ) 

Total dissolved solids 

Turbidity 

Suspended matter 




Percent- 
age of 
anhydrous 
residue. 



19.5 

'l3.*8 

4.7 

12.1 

.0 

41.1 

6.9 

1.9 



Sample collected Aug. 18, 1912. Analysis by Walton Van "Winkle. 



WHITE RIVER. 



White River has its origin in glaciers on the sides of Mount Hood, 
flows at first southward, then veers gradually to the east, and finally 
flows northeastward into Deschutes River below Tygh Valley. The 
water is used for irrigation and also for power development, and the 
chief interest centers in the effect of the glacial silt on lands and on 
water wheels, but as little sediment was held in suspension at the 
time the sample was collected, the effects of the sediment are not 
determinable. 

The water is calcic and sodic carbonate in type and is in this respect 
of somewhat unusual character for a water flowing from lavas. 

Mineral analysis of water from White River at Tygh Valley dam site. 



Parts per 
million. 



Percentage 
of anhy- 
drous 
residue. 



Silica (Si0 2 ) 

Iron(Fe) 

Calcium (Ca) 

Magnesium (Mg) ■. 

Sodium and potassium (Na+K) 

Carbonate radicle (C0 3 ) 

Bicarbonate radicle (HC0 3 ) 

Sulphate radicle (S0 4 ) 

Chlorine (CI) , 

Nitrate radicle (N0 3 ) 

Total dissolved solids 

Color 

Suspended matter 

Turbidity 



18 

.1 

5.8 

1.8 

5.4 

.0 

31 
5.9 
1.0 
Tr. 

60 
4 

34 

19 



34 

.2 

10.9 

3.4 

10.2 

.0 

28.3 

11.1 

1.9 

.0 



Sample collected December, 1911, by Pacific Power & Light Co. Analysis by Walton Van Winkle. 
47195°— wsp 363—14 6 



82 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

SANDY RIVER. 
GENERAL FEATURES. 

Sandy River, like White River, has its source in glaciers on the 
slopes of Mount Hood, but its course is in general northwestward, and 
it discharges into the Columbia at Troutdale, Oreg. It includes as 
a tributary Bull Run River, which is of great local importance, as it 
forms the water supply of the city of Portland. Other tributaries are 
Salmon River, Little Sandy River, and Zigzag, Camp, and Still creeks. 
Elevations in the basin range from nearly sea level at the mouth of 
the Sandy to 11,225 feet at the summit of Mount Hood. 

The mean annual precipitation ranges from more than 40 inches 
near the mouth of the river to 100 inches or more at the higher alti- 
tudes. Much of the total precipitation is in the form of snow, but in 
the foothills there is copious rainfall throughout the winter months. 
A large part of the basin is forested, and most of the forests axe in the 
Oregon National Forest or the Bull Run Forest Reserve. 

CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 

Samples of water for this investigation were collected daily from 
Sandy River by J. T. Mclntyre, gage reader, from August 1 to No- 
vember 28, 1911, and by Glenn Mclntyre, gage reader, from December 
11, 1911, to August 14, 1912. J. T. Mclntyre collected samples from 
the river at the gaging station at a highway bridge 1 mile below the 
mouth of Salmon River and 1 mile below Brightwood; and Glenn 
Mclntyre collected samples from the river at the gaging station a 
short distance above the mouth of the Salmon. Sandy River is a 
glacial stream and carries large amounts of silt at certain seasons, but 
the water of Salmon River is at all times clear. It was hoped that the 
change of station would aid in studying the effects of glacial move- 
ment on the quality of the water, but the differences in the results are 
not so apparent as had been expected. 

The analyses show clearly the results of glacial action at the head- 
waters. Turbidity is slight in winter and spring but great in summer 
and early autumn. The coefficient of fineness averaged 3.63 and at 
times reached 12. Samples collected in large wide-mouthed con- 
tainers would probably have shown even higher coefficients. The 
coefficient indicates that the water carries coarse sand in suspension, 
but this is only part of the truth; the suspended matter ranges in size 
from coarse sand to the finest flour, and although the sand grains 
settle rapidly in quiescent water the flour remains in suspension for 
days. The usual period of silt transportation is from late June until 
late September, but it varies according to climatic conditions at the 
headwaters. 



SANDY EIVER. 



83 



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BULL RUN RIVER. 85 

The water is siliceous and calcic carbonate and sulphate in type, is 
characterized by little primary alkalinity, and contains an unusual 
amount of sulphate for a water flowing from lava rocks. Possibly 
the recent lavas of Mount Hood contain more sulphur than those of 
the Cascade Range or the Columbia River basalt. The water is soft 
and not greatly mineralized but might cause corrosion in boilers under 
some conditions. Sedimentation basins would have to be installed if 
Sandy River were used for power development, and it is probable 
that the glacial debris would materially shorten the life of turbines. 
The water of Sandy River is not so well suited for a municipal supply 
as that of either of its tributaries, Bull Run and Salmon rivers. 

BULL RUN RIVER. 

GENERAL FEATURES. 

Bull Run River flows from a small lake formed by a morainal dam 
lying across an upland valley near Mount Hood. The lake discharges 
through its surface outlet only at high stages, the- usual outflow 
being by seepage through the bowlders of the moraine. The out- 
flowing stream flows northwestward a few miles, then southwest- 
ward to its junction with Sandy River. A long, low rise separates 
this basin from the Mount Hood glaciers, and no glacial water 
reaches the river. The basin comprises 168 square miles, of which 
the greater part is heavily forested. 

The mean annual precipitation at Bull Run post office, which is 
647 feet above sea level and above which there are 96 square miles 
of the drainage basin, is 76 inches. Much of this falls as snow in 
winter, but storage in the lake tends to equalize the run-off somewhat 
and to increase the volume of the low-water flow. 

The annual run-off from the drainage basin probably averages 
more than 100 inches in depth over the area. 

The quality of the water of this river is important because the city 
of Portland diverts water from it near the town of Bull Run through 
two lines of pipe for a municipal supply. The entire drainage basin 
above the intake of the pipe lines is included in the Bull Run Forest 
Reserve, and trespass is prevented by efficient policing. Because of 
the remoteness of upper Bull Run basin and the ideal sanitary con- 
ditions and effective patrol in it, Portland's water supply may be 
considered primarily pure and above criticism. 

CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 

Samples of water for analysis were collected daily during the 
period covered by the investigations through the courtesy of the 
water board of Portland. The water is always clear, largely because 
of lake storage and underground flow. It is very slightly mineralized 
and is not subject to great changes in mineral content, as shown by 
the following analyses: 



86 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 



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WILLAMETTE RIVER. 87 

The water typically represents surface water flowing over igneous 
rocks in a heavily forested region of large rainfall. It is characterized 
by primary alkalinity as a result of its origin among volcanic rocks, 
and it is alkaline carbonate in type — that is, alkalies are present in 
excess of alkaline earths — and carbonate comprises more than 72 per 
cent of the acidic radicles. It is soft and nonscaling. One of the 
largest laundries in Portland finds it cheaper to buy Bull Run water 
from the city than to use Willamette River water, which may be 
obtained without cost, the saving in cost of soap more than counter- 
balancing the cost of the water. The water will not corrode boilers 
or pipes as a result of its mineral content, but it may, unless first 
heated in an open heater, cause corrosion and rusting because of its 
content of dissolved carbon dioxide and oxygen. Any natural water 
of great mineral purity is likely to do the same, however, and it is by 
no means a peculiarity of Bull Run water. The water is very slightly 
colored and its appearance is exceptionally attractive. The pride of 
the city in its water supply appears to be amply justified by the facts. 

WILLAMETTE RIVER. 
GENERAL FEATURES. 

Willamette River is formed by three main branches: Middle Fork, 
which drains the larger area and is therefore considered the continua- 
tion of the main stream, rises in a number of lakes in the Cascade 
Range near Diamond and Maiden peaks, and flows northwest, receiv- 
ing above Eugene the Coast Fork and below Springfield (near Eugene) 
McKenzie River. The Coast Fork rises in the Coast and Calapooya 
ranges and flows north to the junction. The McKenzie rises in the 
Cascade Mountains on the slopes of Mount Washington and the Three 
Sisters peaks and flows westward. Below the mouth of the McKenzie 
the Willamette flows northward through a broad valley to the 
Columbia, which it enters near Portland. 

The basin is roughly rectangular in shape, about 140 miles long, 85 
miles in average width, and comprises 11,150 square miles. The 
nearly level valley floor merges insensibly into rolling uplands which 
are flanked by steep and rugged mountains. The topographic 
features indicate that the valley was probably at one time an arm of 
the ocean and has been raised by uplift to form a river valley. The 
lower Columbia presents a " drowned " aspect, indicating subsidence, 
hence it is probable that at least the lower part of the Willamette 
Valley has been first elevated and then somewhat lowered. 

The mountains bordering the basin on the east are volcanic, and 
the lavas along their western front overlie the Tertiary sediments of 
the lower hills. The valley proper is covered with Pleistocene and 



88 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

Recent sediments and river gravels. The Coast Range, which forms 
the western border, is formed by folds of the Tertiary sediments. The 
soil of the valley is good, though in many places heavy. Extensive 
forests cover the higher parts of the basin, much of them in national 
forest reserves. 

Rainfall is abundant on the uplands but moderate in the valley 
itself. On the Coast Range it is as much as 150 inches and it is 
nearly 100 inches on the Cascade Range, but in the valley it ranges 
from 50 inches at the mouth of the river to 40 inches or less at the 
headwaters. The Calapooya Mountains, which form the southern 
boundary of the valley, receive 55 to 60 inches of rain annually. 
Except in the mountains the greater part of the precipitation occurs 
from September to May. Irrigation must therefore be practiced in 
the valley to insure the best crop production, but little has been done 
in this respect up to the present time. 

The Willamette receives numerous tributaries. The most impor- 
tant streams joining it from the Coast Range are Longtom, Marys, 
Luckiamute, Yamhill, and Tualatin rivers; the important tributaries 
rising in the Cascades are Santiam, Molalla, and Clackamas rivers. 
Power sites are abundant on the Cascade rivers and along the Wil- 
lamette itself. 

CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 

Samples of water were collected daily from Willamette River 
below the intercounty bridge at Salem by Herbert Savage, from 
August 10 to December 31, 1910, and at the bridge by A. B. Seely, 
from August 1, 1911, to August 14, 1912. The drainage basin above 
Salem comprises 7,520 square miles. The character of the water is 
shown by the table on pages 89 and 90. 

The water is soft and well adapted for use in boilers, for it is non- 
corrosive and causes the formation of only a little siliceous scale, 
which experience at steam plants at Salem indicates is not trouble- 
some. The character of the water is determined chiefly by the lava 
formations at the headwater regions. The water is calcic carbonate, 
and its slight hardness is chiefly temporary. The samples collected 
in 1910 contained a greater proportion of alkalies and chloride than 
those collected in 1911-12, a difference probably due to the fact that, 
contrary to instructions, the samples in 1910 were collected below 
the outlet of one of the city sewers and were therefore contaminated 
to some extent by sewage. The samples collected in 1911-12 were 
taken from midstream above local sources of contamination, and 
they were collected early in the morning before heavy traffic across 
the bridge commenced. 



WILLAMETTE RIVER. 



89 



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Mckenzie river. 91 

Willamette River is the source of water supply for many towns 
along its banks, chief among which are Salem, Eugene, and Albany. 
As the water is badly contaminated, it must be purified before being 
forced into the mains. At Eugene, Albany, and Oregon City rapid 
sand filtration is practiced, and at Salem reliance is placed on the 
uncertain filtering action of the river sands and hypochlorite treat- 
ment at the pumps. The present (1914) supplies of these towns are 
considered unsatisfactory, and plans have been proposed at different 
times to furnish mountain water to all the cities in Willamette Valley, 
but no definite action in this direction has yet been taken. 

Mckenzie river. 

GENERAL FEATURES. 

McKenzie River, the north fork of the Willamette, rises in Clear 
Lake, at the foot of the Three Sisters in Lane County, Oreg., at an 
elevation of over 3,250 feet above sea level. It flows generally west- 
ward to its junction with Willamette River near Springfield. Its 
basin is heavily forested, precipitation is copious, and the run-off 
represents a depth of more than 70 inches of water over the drainage 
area. Power sites along the river are numerous. 

CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 

Samples of water for this investigation were collected by Mrs. N. 
M. Hendricks and Samuel Hasbrouck at the gaging station on the 
highway bridge at Hendricks Ferry, 11 miles east of Springfield, 3 
miles below Waterville, 4 miles above Thurston, and 3 miles above 
the mouth of Camp Creek. The drainage basin above the sampling 
point comprises 960 square miles. 

The water is of good quality throughout the year and is soft and 
nearly free from color and suspended matter. It is well suited for 
use in boilers, causing deposits of only small amounts of soft scale. 
Alkalies and alkaline earths are present in approximately equal 
amounts, but on account of difference in reacting values the water 
must be classed as siliceous and calcic carbonate. Above possible 
sources of pollution the water would make a very satisfactory munici- 
pal supply. 



92 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 



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QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 93 



SANTIAM RIVER. 

GENERAL FEATURES. 



Santiam River rises at the foot of Mount Jefferson and Three Fin- 
gered Jack, in the Cascade Range, and flows westward, discharging 
into Willamette River below Albany. Its upper course is through 
narrow denies in the mountains, and its grade is steep, but when it 
emerges from the foothills it meanders over the plain in a shallow 
valley. Many power sites exist along the river, and the waters are 
available for use for power, for irrigation, and possibly for municipal 
supply. 



CHARACTER OP THE WATER. 



Samples of water were collected from Santiam River at the Survey 
gaging station at Mehama, from August 1 to December 18, 1911, by 
J. W. Irvine, gage reader. The drainage basin above this point 
comprises 740 square miles. (See p. 94 for analyses.) 

The water carries little dissolved mineral matter and is similar in 
every respect to the waters of Clackamas River and McKenzie River, 
both of which, as well as the Santiam, head close together on the slopes 
of the Cascades. Because of this similarity in character the station 
at Mehama was discontinued December 18, 1911. 



BREITENBUSH HOT SPRINGS. 



One of the chief tributaries of Santiam River is Breitenbush River, 
which rises in the Cascades between Olallie Butte and Mount Jefferson 
and flows southwestward to its junction with the Santiam near 
Detroit. Breitenbush Hot Springs are situated near this river about 
12 miles above Detroit. Their exact elevation is unknown, but it is 
probably somewhat more than 2,000 feet above sea level. 

The valley of the Breitenbush is narrow and the rocks exposed are 
lavas. Faults at the springs were not observed during field studies 
but possibly the waters issue from a fault. More than 60 hot springs 
in three general groups he along both sides of the stream for almost a 
third of a mile. A few cold springs, entirely different in character, 
lie within the limits of the groups, but as they are normal for the 
region they are unimportant. All the hot springs have nearly the 
same temperature, and the manner of their grouping suggests a com- 
mon origin. Curative properties have been ascribed to the various 
springs, and a crude health resort has been constructed. Many 
patients take the waters each year, and if the place were more readily 
accessible it would undoubtedly enjoy a large patronage. 



94 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 



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CLACKAMAS RIVER. 



95 



In September, 1912, field determinations of the temperature and 
alkalinity of 23 of the springs were made. Samples of water collected 
September 27, 1912, from 9 of these hot springs, from 1 cold spring, and 
from Breitenbush Creek above and below the springs were analyzed 
conjointly by the writer, N. M. Finkbiner, and S. C. Dinsmore, State 
chemist of Nevada. The accompanying table gives results of both 
field and laboratory tests of these samples; the other 14 springs, field 
tests of which were made but are not reported, furnish water of 
similar character. 

The figures show that the several hot springs are merely separate 
outflows from a common source. The water is sodic chloride in 
character, but it contains small amounts of silica, calcium, bicar- 
bonate, and sulphate. Minimum medicinal doses of both sulphate 
and carbonate might be obtained by drinking about 4 kilograms 
(about 1 gallon) of the water, 1 but the disagreeable and even nauseat- 
ing taste of the chloride would make the drinking of that amount in 
one day a Herculean feat. Any curative properties attributable to 
the mineral content are certainly psychologic rather than physiologic. 

Mineral analyses of the waters at Breitenbush Hot Springs. 
[Parts per million except as otherwise designated.] 



Silica(Si0 2 ) 

Iron(Fe) 

Calcium (Ca) 

Magnesium (Mg) 

Sodium (Na) 

Potassium (K) 

Carbonate radicle (C0 3 ) 

Bicarbonate radicle (HCO3) 

Sulphate radicle (SO4) 

Chlorine(Cl) 

Nitrate radicle (N0 3 ) 

Total dissolved solids at 

180° C 

Temperature ( °C.) 



141 

.85 

99 

1.7 

735 

41 

.0 

154 

143 

1,138 

Tr. 

2,470 
67 



134 

.10 

93 

1.5 



.0 

116 

137 

1,128 



2,380 
59 



142 

.17 

89 

1.2 



.0 

128 

138 

1,135 



2,408 
73 



138 

.20 

90 

1.5 



.0 

127 

137 

1,120 



2,379 
73.5 



144 

.10 

86 

1.5 

733 

41 

.0 

128 

137 

1,133 

Tr. 

2,423 
73 



141 

.10 

95 

1.5 



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141 

135 

1,115 



2,384 
69 



151 

.80 

93 

1.0 



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128 

139 

1,143 



2,433 
69 



147 

.10 

97 



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146 

137 

1,145 



2,434 
83 



142 

.05 

96 



133 
1, 120 



2,396 
66 



10 



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93 

1.4 

734 

41 

.0 

133 

137 

1,131 

Tr. 

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70 



11 



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27 

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2.3 

.26 

67 
13 



12 



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4.4 
1.1 

6.9 

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24 

2.3 

2.0 

Tr. 

54 



1. Spring flowing from crevice in rock near right bank of creek, at northeast end of group. Flow about 
"size of wrist." 

2. "Arsenic" spring near left bank of creek, about 600 feet southwest of 1. Flow one-half that of 1. 

3. Spring 43 feet from 2 and N. 84° E. of 1. Flow same as that of 1. 

4. Spring 58 feet N. 87° E. of 2. Flow same as that of 1. 

5. Spring 150 feet from 2 and due west. Flow one-fourth size of wrist. 

6. Spring 175 feet about N. 95° W. of 4. 

7. Spring 150 feet N. 64° W. of 6. 

8. Spring at southwest end of group. 

9. Spring in main bathhouse; difficult of access. 

10. Ave-age of analyses 1 to 9, inclusive. 

11. Cold " Iron" spring on right bank of creek, 250 feet above mouth of Mansfield Creek. 

12. Composite sample from Breitenbush River. 

CLACKAMAS RIVER. 

GENERAL FEATURES. 

Clackamas River rises at the foot of Olallie Butte in the Cascade 
Mountains, in the eastern edge of Clackamas County, and flows north- 
westward to its junction with the Willamette below Oregon City. It 
affords numerous power sites, two of which are now used to furnish 
power for the Portland Railway, Light & Power Co. Its use will 
probably be confined chiefly to power development. 

1 Dole, R. B., The concentration of mineral water in relation to therapeutic activity: U. S. Geol. Survey 
Mineral Resources, 1911, pp. 1175-1192, 1912. 



96 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGOX. 



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COLUMBIA KIVER AT CASCADE LOCKS. 97 



CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 



Samples of water for this investigation were collected from Clacka- 
mas River through the courtesy of the Portland Railway, Light & 
Power Co., at its power house at Cazadero. (See analyses, p. 96.) 

The run-off of Clackamas River above Cazadero is large, averaging 
considerably more than 60 inches in depth over the drainage area, 
which comprises 685 square miles. The average amount of dissolved 
solids is 50 parts per million, the chief constituents being silica, cal- 
cium, and bicarbonate. The water is well suited for use in boilers 
and for most industrial processes. 

COLUMBIA RIVER AT CASCADE LOCKS. 
GENERAL FEATURES. 

At Cascade Locks, on the Oregon side of Columbia River, 20 miles 
below The Dalles, the river flows in a deep, narrow gorge cut through 
the basalts of the Cascade Mountains and over a basalt ledge in a 
series of rapids known as the Cascades. This gorge is a continuation 
of that which the river enters at The Dalles and is now worn nearly 
to base level, the surface of the river at The Dalles at low water being 
only 45 feet above mean sea level. 

The lowest place on Columbia River unaffected by tides is at Cascade 
Locks, and consequently this is the lowest place where representative 
samples of water and trustworthy discharge measurements can be 
obtained, though the current of the river, even near the mouth, is 
strong enough to prevent the water from becoming saline. 

Columbia River receives between Pasco and Cascade Locks the 
following tributaries, which contribute more than 35 per cent of the 
total discharge at Cascade Locks : From the west and north, Klickitat 
River, 1 and White Salmon River; from the east and south, Snake 
River, 1 Walla Walla River, Umatilla River, 2 Willow Creek, John Day 
River, 2 Deschutes River, 2 and Hood River. 

CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 

Samples of water were collected daily from the Columbia in the 
swift flowing water just above the rapids at Cascade Locks from 
March 13 to December 31, 1910, and from August 1, 1911, to August 
14, 1912, by Val W. Tomkins, inspector at Cascade Locks, through 
the courtesy of the district engineer of the Engineer Corps, United 
States Army. The collections were made without interruption in 
1910, but could not be made from January 4 to 17, 1912, because 

i Studied in connection with a chemical survey of the surface waters of Washington in 1910 and 1911. 
See Van Winkle, Walton, The quality of the surface waters of Washington: U. S. Geol. Survey Water- 
Supply Paper 339, 1914. 

8 Studied in connection with the present investigation. 

47195°— wsp 363—14 7 



98 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

there was no reasonably safe place at which a container could be 
lowered through the ice to flowing water. The estimates of dis- 
charge included in the table of analyses have been computed from 
those obtained at the gaging station at The Dalles by correcting 
them for the difference in drainage area. The basin of Columbia 
River above The Dalles covers 236,800 square miles and above Cas- 
cade Locks only 2 ; 600 square miles more. 

Columbia River at Cascade Locks is more highly mineralized than 
at Pasco. 1 The changes in character involve increases in percentages 
of silica, alkalies, and chloride, and decreases in percentages of alka- 
line earths and bicarbonate. Most of these changes can be attributed 
to the influence of Snake River, as the effect of such streams as Uma- 
tilla and John Day rivers, which are much more highly mineralized 
than Columbia River, is unnoticeable on account of their relatively 
small discharge. The increase in silica content between Pasco and 
Cascade Locks is probably due to the introduction of larger amounts 
of this substance by the highly siliceous waters of the tributaries enter- 
ing between those places. 

The water of Columbia River at Cascade Locks is suitable for most 
industrial uses, as it is low in mineral content and is characterized by 
temporary hardness and by low permanent hardness. The scale- 
forming ingredients of the water might be decreased somewhat by 
preheating or by adding small amounts of lime, but such treatment 
is unnecessary because the scale that would be deposited is small in 
amount, soft, and easily removable from boilers. The water might 
cause corrosion, but trouble from that cause would be slight. The 
water is excellent for irrigation, for which a large amount will prob- 
ably be used along the river above The Dalles on the stretches of 
arid but fertile land, which can be made very productive if it is sup- 
plied with water. It will be possible to pump the water onto this 
land by developing cheap summer power at such places as Celilo on 
the Columbia, or along the Deschutes. 

The average salinity of the water for the period of examination was 
89 parts per million. The denudation at Cascade Locks is markedly 
less than that at Pasco, as might be expected. At Pasco 111 tons per 
square mile per year are carried out in solution, whereas at Cascade 
Locks only 70 to 90 tons per square mile are dissolved. Snake River, 
with a drainage area greater than that of the Columbia at Pasco, car- 
ries hi solution but 62.6 tons per square mile, and this river entering 
below Pasco decreases the figure for the Columbia, and the waters 
that enter from the insoluble lavas and basalts of the lower Columbia 
basis decrease the figure still further. 

1 For analyses of the water of Columbia River at Pasco see Van Winkle, Walton, The quality of the sur- 
face waters of Washington: U. S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 339, 1914. 



COLUMBIA KIVEE AT CASCADE LOCKS. 



99 



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102 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 



The water of the lower Columbia River is mixed drainage from a 
very large area, the upper section of which contains large bodies of 
Paleozoic and older sediments, now more or less metamorphosed, and 
the lower section chiefly basalt and other effusive rocks. The water 
of Columbia River at Northport exhibits secondary salinity. The 
water of the river at Pasco may be classed midway between a second- 
ary saline and a primary alkaline water. Columbia River at Cascade 
Locks is also in the border class but is more nearly secondary saline. 
The average of all the analyses shows it to have a slight excess of 
strong acids over alkalies. The effect of the addition of the primary 
alkaline waters of Washington and Oregon on the water of Columbia 
River above the Cascades is, then, to destroy its secondary salinity 
but not to give, it pronounced primary alkalinity. 

Mineral analysis of the water of Columbia River at Mayger. 



Parts per 
million. 



Percentage 
of anhy- 
drous 
residue. 



Silica (Si0 2 ) 

Ferric oxide and alumina (Fe203+Al 2 C>3) 

Calcium (Ca) 

Magnesium (Mg) 

Sodium (Na) 

Potassium (K) 

Carbonate radicle (CO3) 

Bicarbonate radicle (HC03)a 

Sulphate radicle (SO4) 

Chlorine (CI) 

Phosphate radicle (PO4) 

Ammonium radicle (NH 4 ) 

Total dissolved solids at 180° C 




4.6 
4.2 

16.8 
4.8 
7.7 
7.9 

31.8 



10.6 

10.6 

.2 

.8 



a Bicarbonate computed from reported carbonate. 

Sample collected August, 1909; analysis by B. Pilkington, reported in Oregon Agr. Coll. Exper. Sta. 
Bull. 112, p. 45, 1912. 

The values of sodium and potassium in the accompanying analysis 
of the water of Columbia River at Mayger, about 30 miles above the 
mouth, are evidently erroneous, as the excess of potassium over 
sodium is entirely abnormal for river waters in North America. The 
average potassium content of 7 composite samples from the same 
source, each of which represents one month's water, is reported in 
a private communication from the director of the Oregon Agricultural 
College experiment station as 0.97 part per million, which is in 
accord with the writer's deternnnations on water from Cascade Locks. 
If sodium is corrected to 6.5 and potassium to 1.6 parts per million, 
the analysis indicates that the water of Columbia River at Mayger 
is characterized by primary alkalinity. This is chiefly the result 
of the addition to it of the primary alkaline waters of Willamette and 
Lewis rivers, which drain regions of volcanic rock. 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 103 

THE GREAT BASIN. 
OUTLINE OF GEOLOGIC HISTORY. 

The Great. Basin, a roughly triangular area covering parts of the 
States of Utah, Nevada, California, Oregon, Idaho, and Wyoming 
comprises many small independent drainage basins, all of which can 
be grouped into a few greater provinces. The reports on the Quater- 
nary history of two of these provinces, by Gilbert 1 and Russell, 2 
form most important contributions to our knowledge of that period. 
These writers conclude that the Great Basin was well outlined at the 
beginning of the Quaternary period. Orogenic movements had 
produced the dominating crustal structure, consisting primarily of 
huge uptilted fault blocks bounded on one or more sides by bold 
escarpments. These structural forms had been subdued by erosion 
and the valley bottoms filled in by river and lake alluvium. The 
Tertiary period is believed to have been characterized by intervals 
of greater humidity and the formation of extensive lakes. Whether 
these lakes discharged into the ocean is uncertain, though presum- 
ably they did. The Tertiary humid period was followed by a long 
period of greater aridity, in which erosion continued its leveling pro- 
cess on the hills of the Basin. During this time widespread topo- 
graphic changes occurred, caused by continuing crustal displacements, 
uplift, subsidence, faulting, and similar movements. Then succeeded 
another more humid period, this being the first Quaternary period 
of greater humidity. Lakes that were then formed gradually 
encroached on the land of the Basin to form extensive inland seas, the 
largest of which were Bonneville in Utah and Lahontan in Nevada. 
This humid period was long but not sufficiently marked to cause these 
two lakes to find an outlet into the ocean. The lake levels fluctuated 
greatly because of variations of rainfall, and their oscillations are 
recorded in the form of partly buried or obliterated shore terraces 
and beaches. The humid period was succeeded by a more arid one 
in which stream erosion became effective in the sediments uncovered 
by receding lake waters. This relatively short period was succeeded 
by a short but strongly pronounced humid period, in which the basins 
again filled, and at least one lake — Bonneville — overflowed into 
rivers reaching the ocean. The beaches formed in this period were 
fewer but more strongly molded than those previously formed. In 
Lake Bonneville Gilbert found two chief beaches, formed by overflow 
of the lake water through a high pass, followed by the erosion of the 
outlet to a greater depth, at which resistant rock was exposed. 
Russell found no evidence of overflow in Lake Lahontan during the 

i Gilbert, G. K., Lake Bonneville: U. S. Geo!. Survey Mon. 1, 1890. 

2 Russell, I. C, Geological history of Lake Lahontan: U. S. Geol. Survey Mon. 10, 1885. 



104 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

same period, and concluded that this lake attained a condition of 
balance between inflow and evaporation before it reached an outlet 
pass. 

After the precipitation of this humid period had reached its maxi- 
mum it rapidly diminished and a period of probable maximum aridity 
followed. The lakes shrank to relatively small size or entirely 
disappeared, and deserts took their place. Then finally came the 
present period of lessened aridity, in which the few mountain streams 
that do not lose themselves in the sands of the valley floors serve 
barely to sustain the lakes and pools in the lowest depressions. 

HARNEY BASIN. 

GENERAL FEATURES. 

Malheur, Harney, and Silver lakes occupy parts of a large basin 
in the central part of Harney County. The floor of the valley lies 
in general 4,100 feet above sea level, and the ranges bordering it 
attain altitudes of 5,000 to 7,000 feet. Little of the basin or its rim 
is forested, only the northern part lying within the woodlands of the 
Blue Mountains. The principal streams are Silvies River, which 
flows from the southern margin of the Blue Mountains southeast- 
ward to Malheur Lake; Silver Creek, which rises in the high plateau 
on the borders of the Malheur National Forest and flows generally 
southeastward, passing through Silver Lake into Harney Lake; and 
Donner und Blitzen River, which rises on the west slopes of Steens 
Mountain and flows northward through a long swamp-filled valley 
into Malheur Lake. 

The upper parts of the basin expose basalts, rhyolites, and tuffs 
almost exclusively, and the valley floor is everywhere composed of 
alluvium, chiefly of lacustrine origin. According to Waring, 1 the 
valley sediments are not more than 300 feet thick, except perhaps in 
a few places. The alluvium is underlain by lavas and tuffs of inde- 
terminate extent, which afford excellent storage reservoirs for under- 
ground water. Deep wells sunk in the valley have proved the exist- 
ence of artesian water, which can, if necessary, be used to augment 
the present surface supply for irrigation or for other purposes. 

In early Quaternary time the valley was occupied by a broad 
shallow sheet of fresh water receiving inflow from Warner Lakes, 2 the 
Steens Mountain uplands, and the then well-watered slopes of the 
Blue Mountains, and possibly also from the Chewaucan, Alkali, and 
Christmas basins, whose ancient outlets have yet to be discovered. 
It had an outlet into Malheur River through a gap about 20 feet above 
the present valley floor. The appearance of this pass indicates that 

i Waring, G. A., Geology and water resources of the Harney Basin, Oreg.: U. S. Geol. Survey Water- 
Supply Paper 231 , p. 23, 1909. 
i See description of Warner Lake outlet, p. 110. 



HARNEY BASIN. 105 

the amount of discharge from the valley was large, for erosion has 
been extensive and the gap is wide. Another pass into the drainage 
basin of the Malheur lies north of and somewhat higher than the gap 
just mentioned. This basin presents numerous proofs of its origin 
as a river valley, and it is probable, as Russell pointed out, 1 that the 
region has been tilted and faulted subsequent to the development 
of the valley so that its original elevation has been lost. 

The average annual precipitation throughout the basin ranges from 
about 18 to 20 inches on the divides to 10 inches in the valley, and 
irrigation must be practiced to produce other than the most drought- 
resisting crops. The valley lands comprise almost 700,000 acres of 
rich alluvial soil lying in a broad, flat plain around the lakes, with 
arms extending well up into the stream valleys. Much of the land 
is swampy and can not be used for intensive agriculture until drained. 
The swamps are now utilized for the production of wild hay. 

Plans have been made for the irrigation of other districts in Harney 
Basin and development will probably be rapid. 

Estimates made by F. F. Henshaw indicate there should be relatively 
little return or waste water entering Malheur Lake when the surface 
water of the valley has been fully utilized for irrigation. This lake 
can therefore be drained into Harney Lake through a canal, and its 
bed can be cultivated. Harney Lake will then also receive a greatly 
diminished inflow and will gradually dwindle in size, possibly until it 
becomes a playa. 

CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 

Silver Lake is a large shallow body of water in the western part of 
Harney Basin just north of Iron Mountain. Its size varies greatly 
according to the season, as it receives little inflow except during high 
stages of Silver Creek. A sample of water was collected from the lake 
on March 11, 1912, when the water level was extremely low. The 
water was strongly alkaline and was unfit for irrigation or other uses. 
During high stages the water will doubtless be more dilute and of 
better quality, but it should never be used for irrigation if other less 
alkaline supplies are available. If the water is applied to the land, 
land plaster should be used to counteract the harmful effects of the 
black alkali in the water. Irrigation development now contemplated 
for the upper Silver Valley will decrease the inflow of this lake greatly, 
possibly rendering it a playa. 

Malheur Lake is a shallow body of water about 73 square miles in area 
at medium stage but varying within wide limits during wet and dry 
seasons. It receives the drainage of Harney and Blitzen valleys and 
is connected by a channel or strait called The Narrows with Harney 
Lake, into which it flows. Its surface evaporation is great, but owing 

i Russell, I. C, Preliminary report on the geology and water resources of central Oregon: U. S. Geol. 
Survey Bull. 252, p. 39, 1905. 



106 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 



to its discharge into Harney Lake it never becomes strongly alkaline, 
though it is more strongly impregnated with salts than its influent 
waters. Analysis of a sample collected March 8. 1912, from the 
northern part of the lake showed the water to be of alkaline-carbonate 
type but less harmful for irrigation than the water of Silver Lake. It 
could be used for irrigation if great care were exercised to prevent 
accumulation of alkali. Land plaster would also be beneficial on 
lands irrigated with this water. 

Harney Lake occupies the lowest part of the basin and its water is 
highly concentrated. Its level fluctuates markedly, and as no 
records of stage have been kept and its average depth is unknown it 
is impossible to estimate the quantity of material it holds in solution. 
A sample of water of the lake was collected August 5, 1902, when the 
lake was either at high stage or diminishing somewhat in volume, and 
another was collected March 10, 1912, when the lake was at the lowest 
level it has been known to reach. The water is similar in composi- 
tion to that of Owens Lake in California, but its concentration is only 
from one-twentieth to one-tenth that of Owens Lake. It contains 
much dissolved organic matter, which would be troublesome in com- 
mercial operations for the recovery of salts. The amount of sulphate 
in the water is greater than that in either Abert or Summer Lake 
(p. 119), and the amount of chloride is greater than that in Summer 
Lake. It is therefore inferior to these lakes as a source of natural 
soda. Until the water reaches greater concentration in the late 
spring and summer, it will not be at all profitable to attempt the 
recovery of salts from it. 

Mineral analyses of lake waters of the Harney Basin. 



Parts per million. 



Percentage of anhydrous 
residue. 



Silica (Si0 2 ) 

Iron (Ke) 

Aluminum (Al) 

Calcium (Ca) 

Magnesium (Mg) 

Sodium (Na) 

Potassium (K) 

Carbonate radicle (CO ... 
Bicarbonate radicle | IIC<) ; > 

Sulphate radicle (SO4) , 

Chlorine (CI) 

Nitrate radicle ( \'<) ( ) 

Phosphate radicle (!'();).... 
Tetraborate radicle ( B4O7).. 

Total solids 

Specific gravity 



29 
.0 

.0 
.0 

3. 749 

200 

2.710 



K04 
2. SSI 



'.'7 



10.47 



31 

.1 

12 

7.7 

.9 

B,825 

335 

1,594 

1,929 

6,804 

2.8 

10 

Present. 

23,687 

1.0209 



It 

.01 

Tr. 

27 

20 

117 

27 

.0 

439 

37 

22 

2.4 

1.6 

.0 

524 



85 

.21 

5.5 

10 

.8 

1,041 

94 

3()s 

1,404 

138 

456 

3.0 

1.2 

Present. 

2.930 



0.3 

.0 

.0 

.0 

.1 

35.8 

1.9 

25.9 



7.6 

27.5 



0.1 

.0 

.1 

.0 

.0 

39.4 

1.5 

7.1 

al2.7 

8.6 

30.4 



2.9 



5.6 

1.1 
24.2 

5.6 
41.0 



.1 



7.7 
1.5 
.5 
.3 



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3.0 

.0 

.2 

.4 

.0 

36.7 

3.3 

10.9 

« 24. 4 

4.9 

16.1 

.1 

.0 



a Computed as carbonate (CO3). 

1. narnev Lake; collected Aug. 5, 1!)02; analysis by George Steiger. pub. by Clarke. F. W., The data of 

mistry: r. S. Qeol. Survey Bull. 491, p. 15L 1911. 

2. Barney Lake; collected Mar. 10, 1912, by R. D. Cooner; analysis by Walton Van Winkle. 

3. Malheur Lake; collected Mar. 8, 1912, by R. D. Cooper; analysis by Walton Van Winkle. 

4. Silver Lake; collected Mar. 11. 1912, by R. D. Cooper; analysis by Walton Van Winkle. 



SILVIES RIVER. 



107 



DONNER UND BLITZEN RIVER. 



GENERAL FEATURES. 



Donner und Blitzen River rises on the western slopes of Steens 
Mountains and flows northward through a long, narrow swamp, 
finally discharging into Malheur Lake. The Steens Mountain ridge 
is more than 60 miles long, rises 9,000 to 10,000 feet above sea 
level and is practically devoid of timber. Precipitation upon it is 
almost wholly in the form of snow, which collects in great drifts in 
the canyons, and by its slow melting produces a well-sustained stream 
flow. 

CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 

A sample of water was collected August 19 from the drainage 
canal cut through Blitzen Marsh and one, August 20, 1912, from the 
river opposite the P ranch. The following table gives the results 
of analysis of these samples: 

Mineral analyses of the water of Donner und Blitzen River. 



Parts per million. 



Percentage of anhy- 
drous residue. 



Silica (Si0 2 ) 

Iron (Fe) 

Calcium (Ca) 

Magnesium (Mg) 

Sodium and potassium (Na+K) 

Carbonate radicle (CO3) 

Bicarbonate radicle (HCO3) 

Sulphate radkle (S0 4 ) 

Chlorine(Cl) 

Nitrate radicle (NOs) 

Total dissolved solids 



29 
.12 
8.2 
4.0 
8.5 
.0 
51 
2.3 
.75 
Trace. 
93 



32 

.17 
13 
6.8 
10 

.0 
84 
2.6 
.25 
.26 
106 



37.2 
.2 



30.2 
.2 

12.3 
6.4 
9.4 

38.7 



3.0 

1.0 

.0 



2.4 
.2 
.2 



1. Donner und Blitzen River at P ranch, Aug. 20. 1912. 

2. Drainage canal in Blitzen Valley at lowest bridge, Aug. 19, 1912. 

The water is of excellent quality, having the composition common 
to all waters of the Columbia River basalt region. The chief feature 
of interest is the small concentration of the drainage waters from the 
swamp. The organic matter in solution in the swamp water, as is to 
be expected, is noticeable, but it can not amount to more than 5 or 6 
parts per million. 

SILVIES RIVER. 
GENERAL FEATURES. 

Silvies River rises on the slopes of the southern spurs of the Blue 
Mountains and flows southeastward, discharging into the swamp 
bordering Malheur Lake. It drains a well timbered area, but its 
character is nevertheless " flashy." Its summer discharge is almost 
nothing, but its early spring flow frequently averages over 1,500 
second-feet. 



108 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 



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WARNER LAKE BASIN. 109 

CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 

Daily samples of water were collected from Silvies River near 
Burns, but with, considerable irregularity, during the period covered 
by this investigation. Through the help of Mr. C. B. McConnell, 
of the Silver Valley Irrigation Co., collection was begun by Thomas 
Jourdan October 12, and was continued without interruption until 
December 14, 1911. On March 9, 1912, collection was resumed by 
Alfred Taylor, who was shortly afterward succeeded by Charles 
Caulfleld, who continued the collections until August 15, 1912. The 
drainage basin above the sampling point, which is 4 miles from 
Burns, comprises 865 square miles. 

WARNER LAKE BASIN. 

GENERAL FEATURES. 

Warner Lake basin occupies 2,100 square miles in eastern Lake 
County and southwestern Harney County. Its eastern part includes 
a narrow valley 360 square miles in extent but only 6 or 8 miles 
wide at the northern end, which is flanked by escarpments of the 
Basin Range type and contains a series of shallow pools — remnants 
of what was once Warner Lake. No perennial streams feed the lakes 
from the north or east, but Twentymile Creek enters from the south 
and Deep and Honey creeks from the west. These streams rise in 
forested plateaus, but there is little timber land in the rest of the 
drainage basin. 

From records of precipitation in near-by valleys and from state- 
ments of engineers familiar with the region it is estimated that the 
average annual rainfall is not more than 9 or 10 inches at the north 
end of the valley, about 12 inches at the south end, and 25 inches or 
more in the mountainous portions of the basin. The valley floor is 
4,455 to 4,480 feet * above sea level, the general elevation of the 
divides being more than 6,500 feet and that of Warner Mountains on 
the eastern rim 7,500 feet. The scarp on the east side of the valley, 
a cliff of remarkable grandeur, averages more than 2,000 feet in 
height. The scarp on the west side is lower and less steep and is so 
deeply dissected in its northern part by the valleys of Honey and 
Deep creeks as largely to have lost its original character, though in 
its southern part it is bold. The divide north of the valley is low 
and its slopes are gentle. The scarps rise from the valley to a rou^h 
broken plateau forming the uplands of the basin. This plateau has 
been cut by erosion into valleys and gulches. The valley bottom 
presents a remarkable contrast to the rocky highlands. It is almost 
level, with a slight downward slope to the north. The greater part 
of the plain is covered with lakes or marshes, those at the south end 

i Unpublished surveys of Oregon- Washington Railroad <fe Navigation Co. 



110 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

being fringed with tules and other aquatic plants and those at. the 
north being barren and desolate. 

The lakes now lying in Warner Valley are, from south to north, 
Pelican, Crump, Hart, Anderson, Mugwump, Flagstaff, and Bluejoint, 
which occupy indefinite areas, flooding then low banks in the wet 
season and becoming brackish sinks in the dry season. A proposed 
irrigation project for this valley contemplates the control of the waters 
entering these lakes and possibly the drainage of some of them. 
What effect irrigation will have on the total water supply of the lakes 
is yet unknown. 

OUTLET OF QUATERNARY LAKE WARNER. 

Shore lines of a large, deep lake that occupied the valley within 
Quaternary time are discernible at several places along the cliffs, 
and one strongly defined beach, 200/ 225, 2 or 268 3 feet above the 
present water surface can be traced for miles. The strong definition 
of this beach is evidence that the lake was stationary at one level for 
a long time. It is apparently the current belief that the Quaternary 
Warner Lake had no outlet, for Russell, 4 after a reconnaissance of 
the Great Basin in southern Oregon, stated that only the lakes 
occupying the Harney, Goose, and Klamath basins in Oregon and 
the Madeline Plains in California had outlets,, and his statement 
apparently was accepted by Waring. 5 Free 6 also has concluded that 
the Warner Basin has always been entirely inclosed. The writer's 
investigations have, however, led him to believe that the lake had an 
outlet. 

The rim of its basin north of Warner Lake is relatively low, 7 a 
gentle slope rising northward and attaining a maximum elevation of 
about 190 feet above the present level of Bluejoint Lake, about 12 
miles north of the lake. The top of the divide there appears to have 
been formed by deposits from a stream that flowed hi a canyon open- 
ing from the west. Just north of the divide Mule Spring discharges 
into a rivulet which flows northward in a wide, shallow valley 25 feet 
lower than the divide and finally sinks into the desert. Approxi- 
mately a mile beyond Mule Spring is another divide, perhaps 25 feet 
higher than the more southerly one, and also formed apparently by 

1 Elevation from level carried from Bluejoint Lake to beach by J. T. Whistler, Portland. 

2 Russell, I. C, A geological reconnaissance in southern Oregon: r. S. Qeol. Survey Fourth Ann. Rept., 
p. 159, 1883. 

3 Elevation carried by leveling from datum of Crump Lake gage to beach by J. E. Stewart, of the U. S. 
Geological Survey. 

* Russell, I. C, op. cit., p. 45S. 

'•> Waring, G. A., Geology and water resources of the Harney Basin region, Oreg.: I*. S. Geol. Survey 
\\at<r-Supply Paper 231, 1909. 

« Free, E. E., The topographic features of the desert basins of the United States with reference to the 
possible occurrence of potash: U. S. Dept. Agr. Bull. 54, pp. 26, 60, 1914. 

7 Inscription and elevations based on notes by Garfield Stubbleficld, civil engineer, Portland, and ou 
unpublished surveys by the Oregon Eastern Railway. 



WARNER LAKE BASIN. 



Ill 



alluvial deposits. 1 A basin north of this second divide, probably a con- 
tinuation of the valley of the Mule Spring creek, also terminates on 
the north in a divide with another basin beyond. Thus there are three 
basins separated by low divides. The floors of the basins are less 
than 4,700 feet above sea level and slope northward. Beyond the 
northernmost divide a canyon, which winds away to the northwest, 
opens into Big Stick Canyon, which, in turn, circles around Iron 
Mountain and enters Harney Basin from the west. The elevations of 
the different basins decrease from south to north, and the low divides 
were apparently formed by deposits washed in from side canyons. 
The elevation of the pass with the detritus removed would be very 
nearly the elevation of the ancient beaches. 2 

Elevations from Big Stick Canyon to Bluejoint Lake. 



Distance. 


Elevation 

above sea 

level. 


Remarks. 


Miles. 

3 
7.5 


Feet. 
4,231.83 
4,255 
4,595 


Maximum ground bed. 
Flat; rising easily. 


13.7 
23.6 
26.0 
28.2 


4,717 
4,785 
4,683 
4,791 


Summit ground. 

Do. 
Trough of ground. 
Summit ground. 
Broad flat. 


32.0 
33.1 
46.0 


4,626 
4,650 
4,458 


Bottom ground. 
Summit ground. 
High water Warner Lake; north end of Bluejoint Lake. 



The preceding table gives an abstract of the maximum and mini- 
mum elevations obtained by the Oregon- Washington Railroad & 
Navigation Co. during its survey from Big Stick Canyon to Blue- 
joint Lake, the distances being measured from the junction of the 
main line and the Warner Lake branch in Big Stick Canyon. The 
survey line is partly within the canyon and partly above the rock 
rim and it crosses three summits that are higher than the level of the 
old beach line of Warner Lake. If these low divides have been formed 
by alluvial material brought into the main canyon by side streams, 
the rock flow of the canyon may be at a lower elevation than the 
beach and the canyon may thus have afforded an outlet by which 
Warner Lake drained northward into Malheur River and thence into 
the Snake. 

The probability of the existence of an outlet to the Quaternary 
lake can also be roughly determined by considering the relation of 

1 The railroad surveys of the Oregon Eastern Railway do not follow the canyon closely at all places, 
and the elevations as shown by the railroad surveys are somewhat greater than those mentioned. 

2 Since the above statements were written J. E. Stewart has discovered a basaltic dike that lies across the 
outlet canyon and extends about 80 feet above the level of the ancient beach. The surface of the dike is 
water worn, and it presents a problem to be solved before the existence of the ancient outlet can be deter- 
mined. 



112 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

its water surface to the area of its drainage basin. If a lake has no 
outlet its water level will rise until evaporation from the surface 
counterbalances the additions by rainfall and inflow. At that stage 
there will be for a given set of conditions a definite ratio between the 
area of the lake surface and that of the tributary basin, which will be 
the same for all basins exposed to similar conditions. Russell placed 
the ratio of the surface of Lake Lahontan to its total drainage area 
at approximately 1 to 5. 1 No topographic maps have been made 
which will furnish exact information regarding the extent of Quater- 
nary Warner Lake and its basin, but the best available maps indi- 
cate that the ratio of its water surface to its drainage area was about 
1 to 5. If this ratio is correct and if Warner Lake had no outlet the 
early Quaternary precipitation in Warner Basin must have been almost 
exactly equal to that in Lahontan Basin. But as the precipitation in 
Warner Basin is now one-third greater than in Lahontan Basin and as 
no known physiographic changes since early Quaternary time would 
have made a great alteration in relative precipitation, it is probable 
that precipitation then was greater in Warner Basin than in Lahontan 
Basin. On this assumption, Warner Lake must either have, had an 
outlet or must have filled its basin to a level several hundred feet 
higher than the highest beach — an obvious improbability. 

Briefly, the available physical evidence points to the possibility 
that the ancient Warner Lake discharged northward; confirmation 
of this evidence might be obtained by determining whether the low 
divides of the basin are composed of alluvial material or bedrock and 
also whether the surface has been locally distorted since early Quater- 
nary time. 

SALT DEPOSITS IN THE BASIN. 

If Warner Lake overflowed in early Quaternary time its water was 
then fresh, and consequently salt deposits that may now occupy the 
former lake bed have been formed by concentration only of the mate- 
rial that has been washed into the lake bottom since the lake ceased to 
have an outlet. The small size of the former lake and the presumably 
low concentration of its water make it entirely unlikely that saline 
deposits of great thickness or extent now underlie the surface, and 
this relatively small amount of saline material is probably mixed 
with much greater quantities of clay and silt. Several wells that 
have been sunk in the valley are said to have penetrated strata of 
strongly alkaline and probably borated salts mingled with silt and 
sand, a condition that renders unlikely the existence of extensive 
valuable saline deposits. Rock salt of low grade has been obtained 
for years by solar evaporation of brines obtained presumably from the 
strata just below the surface at the north end of the valley, but this 

i Russell, I. C, The geological history of Lake Lahontan: U. S. Geol. Survey Mon. 11, p. 260, 1885. 



WARNER LAKE BASIN. 



113 



deposit is probably local and the product is economically unimportant, 
being used chiefly for salting stock. The salt is somewhat carbonated 
but contains only a small amount of sulphate. 



CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 



Samples of water were collected September 5, 6, and 7, 1912, from 
Pelican, Crump, Hart, Flagstaff, and Bluejoint lakes through the 
kindness of Mr. John Dubuis, of Portland. 

Mineral analyses of lake waters in Warner Lake basin. 



Parts per million. 



Percentage of anhydrous resi- 
due. 



Silica(Si0 2 ) 

Iron(Fe) 

Calcium (Ca) 

Magnesium (Mg) 

Sodium (Na) 

Potassium (K) 

Carbonate radicle (C0 3 ) . . . 
Bicarbonate radicle (HCO3) 

Sulphate radicle (S0 4 ) 

Chlorine(Cl) 

Nitrate radicle (N0 3 ) 

Phosphate radicle (PO4). . 
Tetraborate radicle (B4O7) 
Total dissolved solids at 

180°C 

Total solids after ignition. 



24 

45* 

52 

580 

71 

167 

904 

438 

158 

1. 

1. 



Present. 

2,135 
1,946 



13 
5.6 

} 21 

.0 
95 
8.6 
4.2 
1.7 
Tr. 
.0 

135 
95 



19 

22* 
9. 

55 

211* 

16 

9 



.56 



.82 
.0 



267 
217 



28 

.6 
19 
19 

r 102 

l 15 
60 
238 
24 
37 
1.0 
.82 
Present. 

461 

386 



20 

.5 
21 
23 
1,372 
82 
511 
1,823 
206 
504 
.84 
2.0 
Present. 

3,951 
3,756 



1.2 

.0 

2.3 

2.6 

29.3 

3.6 

8.4 

a22. 4 

22.1 

8.0 

.0 

.1 



2.9 

.2 

12.5 

5.4 

.20.1 

.0 

a45.1 

8.2 

4.0 

1.6 

.0 

.0 



8.0 

.2 

9.3 

4.1 

23.2 

.0 

a43.9 

6.8 

3.8 

.3 

.4 

.0 



4, 

4. 
24. 

3. 

14 

a27 

5 



0.6 

.0 

.6 

.6 

37.7 

2.3 

14.0 

a24.7 

5.6 

13.8 

.0 

.1 



a Computed as carbonate (CO3). 

1. Pelican Lake; collected Sept. 7, 1912, by Dallas Dodd, from a shallow arm south of middle of west end 
of lake, 100 feet from main lake; many cattle standing in arm. 

2. Crump Lake; collected Sept. 7, 1912, by Dallas Dodd, where road comes near the lake; no wind; 
water clear. 

3. Hart Lake; collected Sept. 5, 1912, by Dallas Dodd, about 1 mile north of mouth of Honey Creek 
windy; water turbid. 

4. Flagstaff Lake; collected Sept. 6, 1912, by Dallas Dodd, at Cliff House, near pump station No. 1, 20 
feet east of township line. 

5. Bluejoint Lake; collected Sept. 6, 1912, by Dallas Dodd, 30 feet from shore near intersection of fence 
due south of Laird's Ranch; heavy wind and rain. 

The waters are of surprisingly slight concentration, especially 
that of Bluejoint Lake, which is the last lake in the series and is fed 
only by overflow from Flagstaff Lake and by temporary streams 
from the arid north rim of the basin. The waters are sodic bicar- 
bonate and carbonate, as would be expected in this region, and pre- 
sent few unusual features of composition. 

The remarkably high concentration of the water of Pelican Lake 
is partly accounted for by the explanation of the collector, that the 
sample was collected from an open arm in which cattle were wading. 
Pelican Lake is connected with Crump Lake only through a stagnant 
swamp, and as Crump Lake is directly fed by Deep Creek the de- 
cidedly lower concentration of dissolved material in its water seems 
reasonable. The proportionately high sulphate in Pelican Lake 
may be due to hot springs, which are reported to occur in the lake. 
47195°— wsp 363—14 8 



114 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

The analysis is of somewhat doubtful value, but it indicates that the 
water is poor in quality and should not be used for irrigation unless 
rapid and thorough drainage is provided. The water is not suitable 
for use on the heavy soils of the valley. 

The waters of Crump and Hart lakes are excellently suited for use 
on the lands of the valley. They hold much organic matter in solu- 
tion, which is to be expected, but they are not strongly mineralized 
and will not noticeably increase soil alkalinity. 

Flagstaff Lake contains water that could be used on loose soils 
without any special precautions to prevent accumulation of alkali. 
As the soils of Warner Valley are, however, generally heavy, they 
should be carefully drained if this water in the condition shown by 
the analysis is used. This conclusion is possibly too harsh, as the 
analysis represents the water at low stage, when it is most strongly 
concentrated. The season for withdrawing water for irrigation in 
this valley will be from the last part of May until about the first of 
September. The water withdrawn during the early part of the irri- 
gation season will be much more dilute and therefore better suited 
for use. If the lake were pumped nearly dry and the purer water of 
Hart and Crump lakes allowed to enter it, the resulting composite 
water would be better suited for irrigation. Withdrawal of water in 
early summer will greatly lower the level of the lake, and the irri- 
gation company, in fact, plans to drain the lake completely at first in 
order that the basin may be freshened and the water of the lake there- 
after be better fitted for irrigation. Bluejoint Lake, also, will proba- 
bly be periodically desiccated for like reasons. It seems, therefore, 
possible to utilize the waters of Crump, Hart, and Flagstaff lakes as 
planned without danger of hurting the irrigated lands, provided, how- 
ever, that the water table can be kept low enough to prevent serious 
rise of alkali. 

The water of Bluejoint Lake is entirely unsuited for irrigation, as 

it would choke the soil with alkali. Use of it is not contemplated 

and diversion of water that now enters the lake from the south will 

probably allow the lake to dry up during dry seasons; when the 

lake basin then becomes refilled the water in it shoujd be better than 

it is now on account of the previous dissipation or burial of the salts 

now in solution. 

ALKALI LAKE BASIN. 

Alkali Lake occupies a broad shallow basin lying north and north- 
east of Abert Lake. The bottom of the basin is a valley about 20 
miles long and 5 miles wide, divided into a north and a south section 
by a spur of hills that project into it from the west. The south 
ection contains Alkali Lake and the north one a still more ephemeral 
body of water known as Little Alkali Lake. The water of these 



CHRISTMAS LAKE BASIN. 115 

playas is highly concentrated, the dissolved matter averaging more 
than 10 per cent by weight of the total brine. No analyses were 
made of the waters, but they probably are carbonate brines, con- 
taining only small amounts of sulphate or chloride, as large " pot- 
holes" in the valley contain almost pure sodium carbonate. These 
potholes have been worked for their soda at different times and 
have been found to refill slowly with nearly pure, crystalline soda 
after having been mined. The workings are now controlled by the 
American Soda Products Co. 

The geologic history of this valley is not well known. It is possi- 
ble that in early Quaternary time it contained a shallow lake without 
outlet, but more definite knowledge of the topography of its northern 
portion may show that there was drainage northward into the river 
whose traces remain in Big Stick Canyon. The lake may, on the 
other hand, have had a more or less continuous outflow into Chewau- 
can Basin, or the waters of the latter may have flowed into Alkali 
Lake basin. The nature of the deposits in the basin indicate that 
there was an outlet to Alkali Lake, though the discharge was so 
slight that the waters became sufficiently concentrated to precipitate 
the less soluble alkali carbonates but not the more soluble chlorides. 

Though early reports indicated the presence of large deposits of 
borates in this valley, later investigations, reported verbally to the 
writer by Mr. E. E. Smith, of the American Soda Products Co., 
have shown the presence of only traces in the surface deposits. 

CHRISTMAS LAKE BASIN. 

GENERAL FEATURES. 

Silver Lake occupies the extreme southern corner of an irregular 
valley lying north of Summer Lake, at an elevation of about 4,700 
feet. Though the basin is large, including the drainage areas of 
Fossil, Christmas, and Thorn lakes, only a small part of it is now 
tributary to Silver Lake. Silver Creek, southwest of Silver Lake, 
is the only important stream in the region. It rises in the mountains 
back of Winter Ridge, flows northward into Pauline Marsh, then 
turns to the southeast and empties into Silver Lake, after being 
augmented by the waters of Bear and Bridge creeks. Its head- 
waters lie in the woodlands of the Fremont National Forest, the only 
forested part of the whole basin. 

Silver Lake is about 15 square miles in extent at normal stage 
but is subject to marked fluctuations. It has dried up several times 
and it has also overflowed, flooding Thorn Lake and the near-by desert. 
The frequent desiccations to which it has been subject have had a 
pronounced effect on the composition of its water. It is not strongly 



116 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

concentrated, as is common with the water of lakes in the Great 
Basin, but, as shown by the accompanying analysis, is fresh. The 
most satisfactory explanation of this phenomenon is that when the 
lake dries up its deposited mineral salts are blown over the desert 
and so dissipated, or are covered with an impermeable coating of 
silt and sand. When the lake is renewed there are no surface salts 
to be redissolved and consequently the water is fresh. The amount 
of freshening the water of Silver Lake undergoes by dilution and flood- 
ing into Thorn Lake is probably insignificant compared with that 
effected by frequent desiccations. Some of the irrigated lands 
bordering Silver Lake produce good crops. Pauline Marsh is used 
for cropping wild hay, but it is capable of more intensive develop- 
ment. Much of the valley around the lake can be profitably irrigated. 

About 20 miles northeast of Silver Lake is a small perennial body 
of water known as Christmas Lake, which is fed by an intermittent 
spring at its south end and possibly also by subsurface inflow from 
other springs. A shallow well near its west shore yields uniformly 
cool water containing about 400 parts per million 1 of mineral matter, 
although other wells in the vicinity are much more highly charged. 
The well and the springs evidently yield water from the lava forma- 
tions of better watered uplands some distance away. 

A small lake called Fossil Lake, still farther from Silver Lake, is 
also spring fed, the waters entering it being sweet and not excessively 
hard. Beach marks indicate that the basin in which Silver Lake 
lies contained an immense Quaternary lake that must have long 
remained at a constant level, for its prominent shore line is in places 
cut into solid rock, as at Fort Rock, near Fremont. (See PL II, B, 
p. 40.) The lake probably had an outlet, but the location of this 
outlet has not yet been discovered. A hasty examination of the 
part of the shore fine visible from the road between Bend and Pais- 
ley revealed no traces of the outlet. No evidence of a connection 
between Christmas Lake Basin and Chewaucan Basin was found at 
the north end of Summer Lake. The sources of Big Stick Canyon, 
old Crooked River, and old Deschutes River, which have not been 
studied, may hold valuable evidence on this interesting problem. 

CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 

The following analyses indicate the character of the surface, spring, 
and normal subsurface waters of the region: 

i Waring, G. A., Geology and water resources of a portion of south-central Oregon: U. S. Gcol. Survey 
Water-Supply Paper 2-20, p. G6, 1908. 



CHEWAUCAN BASIN. 

Mineral analyses of waters in Christmas Lake basin. 



117 





Parts per million. 


Percentage of anhydrous 
residue. 




1 


2 


3 


4 


5 


1 


2 


3 


4 


5 


Silica (Si0 2 ) 


57 

.3 
42 
25 
62 
23 
319 
9.2 
3.3 
.24 
394 
25 










15.0 
.1 
11.4 
6.6 
16.4 
47.2 










Iron (Fe) 


















Calcium (Ca) 


22 
17 
84 

.0 
253 
25 
20 

.0 
368 


56 

48 
700 

.0 
788 
880 
153 

Trace. 
2,350 


82 

82 

1,285 

.0 

441 

2,040 

574 

Trace. 
4,328 


13 
5.1 

14 

.0 

44 

1.7 

6-1 

.0 

100 


7.5 

5.8 
28.7 
42.7 


2.5 

2.2 

31.5 

17.4 


1.9 
1.9 

30.0 
5.1 


21.0 


Magnesium (Mg) 


8.3 


Sodium and potassium (Na+K) 

Carbonate radicle (CO3) 


22.6 
35.5 


Bicarbonate radicle (HCO3) 




Sulphate radicle (SO4) 


2.4 
.9 
.1 


8.5 

6.8 

.0 


39.5 
6.9 
Tr. 


47.7 

13.4 

Tr. 


2.7 


Chlorine (CI) 


9.9 


Ni+rate radicle (NO3) 


.0 


Total dissolved solids at 180° C. . . 




Color 

































1. Silver Lake; sample collected February, 1912, by W. O. Harmon; Walton Van Winkle, analyst. 

2. Well of J. Wilson, near Fossil Lake. 

3. Well of J. C. Green, near Fossil Lake. 

4. Well of John Ross, Christmas Lake Valley. 

5. Stream at A. Eglis's, Wagontire Mountain. 

Analyses 2, 3, 4, 5 by W. H. Heilman; reported by Waring, G. A., Geology and water resources of a por- 
tion of south-central Oregon: U. S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 220, p. 72, 1908. 

CHEWATJCAN BASIN. 

GENERAL FEATURES. 

The Chewaucan Basin is a large, roughly triangular area in central 
Lake County, containing the U-shaped, valley of Summer and Abert 
lakes, Summer Lake occupying the upper end of the left arm and 
Abert Lake filling most of the smaller right arm. Between the two 
lakes is Chewaucan River and Marsh, draining the mountains to the 
west and separated from Summer Lake by a divide less than 200 
feet above the lake level. The elevation of the lake surfaces is about 
4,400 feet above sea level, and that of the rim of the divide is 6,500 
feet on the south and west and slightly over 5,000 feet on the north. 
The principal perennial streams of the basin are Ana River, rising 
from springs and flowing into Summer Lake, and Chewaucan River, 
Coyote Creek, and Crooked Creek, flowing from the highlands on 
the west and south to Abert Lake. The basin is timberless except 
at the western edge, and except in the valley bottoms can not easily 
be made productive. A project is being developed under the Carey 
Act to irrigate slightly more than 12,000 acres in Summer Lake 
Valley with the waters of Chewaucan River. 

The .formations of the basin consist of basalts and tuffs or the dis- 
integration and erosion products of these, and the soil of the valley 
floor is fertile except where the strongly alkaline waters from the 
lakes overflow it. The lakes occupy portions of the site of a laige 
Quaternary lake. The analyses on page 106 indicate that the lakes 
are comparable in age, as landlocked seas, with Harney Lake. 
Russell 1 concluded from evidence then in hand that the valleys of 

1 Russell, I. C, A geological reconnaissance in southern Oregon: U. S. Geol. Survey Fourth Ann. Rept., 
p. 459, 1884. 



118 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

Summer and Abert lakes and Chewaucan River were once filled 
with water to a height of 300 or 350 feet above the present lake levels 
and considered that the present lakes are remains of this ancient 
lake. The highest beaches are visible in places at about this eleva- 
tion and do not indicate any perceptible distortion or tilting. It is 
more probable that there was at some time a period of complete 
desiccation, and that the greater part of the solid matter deposited 
from the former lake by concentration and evaporation now lies 
beneath the valley floor. This material may lie in beds, but it may 
be so mixed with the valley silts that it can not be profitably extracted. 

The evidence is conclusive that no connection has existed between 
Christmas Lake Basin and Chewaucan Basin within Quaternary time. 
Chewaucan Basin is separated from Alkali Lake Basin on the north- 
east by a low ridge, and an outlet from one basin into the other may 
have existed in earlier Quaternary time. Whether Alkali Lake Basin 
drained into Big Stick Canyon on the north is important. If Alkali 
Lake discharged into Chewaucan Basin, there is a strong possibility 
that valuable saline deposits He beneath the floor of this basin; if it 
discharged into Big Stick Canyon, the question of the existence of an 
outlet to Chewaucan Basin assumes considerable importance in any 
search for valuable saline deposits. The salt deposits or incrusta- 
tions in Alkali Lake Basin are chiefly soda and gypsum, with small 
amounts of common salt — evidence that that basin had an outlet and 
that, though the water in it became sufficiently concentrated to 
deposit the less soluble salts, it did not deposit the more soluble 
material. Free * considers the Chewaucan Basin less likely to contain 
deposits of potash than Warner Basin. The writer believes, however, 
that there is greater probability of the existence of workable deposits 
in the Chewaucan Basin and that this probability warrants a careful 
examination of the local features in order to determine the existence 
of an ancient outlet of the basin. 

Abert Lake is a shallow body of water, 60 miles in extent, lying in 
the eastern part of Chewaucan Basin. Its average depth has never 
been accurately determined but is probably about 5 feet. It is fed 
by Chewaucan River and its tributaries and by a few minor streams 
and possibly by subsurface springs. A project that is now being 
developed to recover salt, soda, and borax from the waters by evap- 
oration contemplates the damming of the north end of the lake and 
the evaporation of the concentrated waters held in the basin thus 
formed. 

Summer Lake covers an area of about 70 square miles in the west- 
ern part of Chewaucan Basin. It is fed chiefly by Ana River, which 
rises in large springs in the north end of the valley, flows in a mean- 

1 Free, E. E., The topographic features of the desert basins of the United States with reference to the 
possible occurrence of potash: U. S. Dept. Agr. Bull. 54, pp. 1H1-162, 1914. 



CHEWAUCAN BASIN. 



119 



dering course 7 miles, and discharges about 145 second-feet of water 
into the lake. Other springs contribute unmeasured amounts of 
water, and temporary streams add somewhat to the winter inflow. 
The west shore of the lake, lying under the shelter of the Winter Ridge 
rim rock, is well protected from frosts and produces large yields of 
fruits and berries. Large tracts of land in the valley can be made 
productive through irrigation, and steps are now being taken to re- 
claim some of these. The recovery of the salts in solution in the lake 
also promises to be an important local industry. 



CHARACTER OF THE WATER. 

Many analyses of the waters of Summer and Abert lakes have been 
made at various times and some experimental work has been done in 
connection with plans for soda recovery, but though Chatard called 
attention to the Oregon lakes * by an analysis published as early as 
1890, no systematic attempt at their utilization has been made until 
quite recently. Stillwell & Gladding, of New York, made analyses 
of the waters of Summer and Abert lakes in 1901 for a private investi- 
gator, and in 1902 Mr. E. T. Dumble, chemist for the Southern Pacific 
Co., also made analyses. In 1910-11 Mr. F. Von Eschen, and in 
1913 Messrs. Edward and Lazell, of Portland, made studies of the 
waters and their utilization, but the results of these studies have not 
been published. Analyses of the waters of Abert and Summer lakes 
were made by the writer in February, 1912, the results being tabulated 
herein with those of Chatard, Stillwell & Gladding, and Dumble. 
Analyses of the water of Ana River and the springs at its source by 
the United States Reclamation Service are included in the table. 





Mineral 


analyses of waters of Chewaucan Basin. 










Milligrams per kilogram. 


Percentage of total solids. 




1 


2 


3 


4 


5 


1 


2 


3 


4 


5 , 


Silica (Si0 2 ) 


225 


165 


300 


96 

.12 

34 

Tr. 

.60 

11,470 

502 

J 4,920 

1 2,500 

565 
10,711 
1.0 


268 


0.59 


0.21 


0.44 


0.31 
.00 
.11 
.00 
.00 
37.24 
1.63 

J15. 98 

1&8. 12 

1.83 

34.78 

.00 


0.73 


Iron (Fe) 




Aluminum ( Al) 


















Calcium (Ca) 


















Magnesium (Mg) 


















Sodium (Na) 


14, 246 
522 

5,852 

3,403 

685 

13,055 


30,032 
1,233 

13,363 

5,292 

1,444 

27,483 


26,570 
1,043 

I ol5, 742 

1,281 
22,359 


14,529 
727 

lal3,294 

1,452 
6,280 


37.51 
1.37 

[15.40 

1&8. 96 

1.80 

34.37 


38.01 
1.56 

16.91 

66.69 

1.83 

34.79 


. 39. 48 
1.55 

|o23.39 

1.92 
33.22 


39.75 


Potassium (K) 

Carbonate radicle 

(CO,) 

Bicarbonate radicle 

(HC0 3 ) 


1.98 
U36.38 


Sulphate radicle (SO<) 
Chlorine (CI) 


3.97 
17.19 


Nitrate radicle (NO3) . . 






















Total solids 


37,988 
1.03117 
(at 19.8° 
C.j. 


79,012 
1.064 

(temp, 
not 

given). 


67,295 
1.0515 
(at 15.5° 

C). 


30,799 
1.0255 
(at 15.0° 
C). 


36, 550 
1.0319 
(at 15.5° 
C). 



































o Total combined carbonate expressed as CO3. 



6 Not computed to carbonate. 



Chatard, T. M., Natural soda, its occurrence and utilization: U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 60, p. 51, 1890. 



120 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 
Mineral analyses of waters of Ghewaucan Basin — Continued. 





Milligrams per kilogram. 


Percentage of total solids. 




6 


7 


8 


9 


10 


6 7 


8 


9 


alO 


Silica (SiOj)... 


288 


104 

.25 
24 
Tr. 

.40 

6,567 

265 

4,514 

2,851 

604 

3,038 

3.6 






37 

.01 


0. 87 0. 58 






23.9 


Iron (Fe)... 








.00 
.13 
.00 
.00 






.0 


Aluminum (Al).. 














Calciam (Ca")... 




12 

6 

| 55 

.0 
116 
12 
39 

.0 


10 
5 

58 

14 
89 
37 
19 
.0 


4.9 
4.4 

39 

8.6 
86 

8.1 
11 
.20 


(36. 74 
\ 1.70 

25. 20 

614.88 

3.74 

16.87 


5.4 
2.7 


4.7 
2.3 

27.1 

6.5 

c20. 5 

17.3 

8.9 

.0 


3.2 


Magnesium (Mg) 




2.8 


Sodium (Na) 


12,105 

560 
8,302 
4,902 
1.233 
5,559 


3 ^5-l 25.0 
1. 4/ 1 




Potassium (K) 


25.2 


Carbonate radicle (C0 3 ) 

Bicarbonate radicle (HCO g ) . . . 

Sulphate radicle (SCM 

Chlorine (CI) 


24. 99 

615. 78 

3.85 

16.82 

.02 


.0 
c26.0 

5.4 

17.7 
.0 


5.6 

c26.9 

5.2 

7.1 


Nitrate radicle (N0 3 ) .. 


.1 








Total solids 


32,949 
1.0354 
(temp. 

not 
given). 


18,061 

1.0162 (at 

15/ C). 


220 


214 


158 








1 


Specific gravity 





























a Percentage of anhydrous residue. 6 Not computed to carbonate, c Computed to carbonate (C0 3 ). 

1. Abert Lake; analysis bv T. M. Chatard; sample collected September, 1887, by H. T. Biddle, at middle 
of west side of lake. U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 60, p. 55, 1890. 

2. Abert Lake; analysis by E. T. Dumble for Southern Pacific Co., 1902. 

3. Abert Lake; analysis by Stillwell & Gladding, Oct. 14, 1901. 

4. Abert Lake; analysis by Walton Van Winkle; sample collected by W. O. Harmon, February, 1912, 
from south end of lake. 

5. Summer Lake; analysis by Stillwell & Gladding, Oct. 2, 1901. 

6. Summer Lake; analysis by E. T. Dumble for Southern Pacific Co., 1902. 

7. Summer Lake; analysis by Walton Van Winkle; sample collected by W. O. Harmon, February, 1912. 

8. Ana River springs; analysis by W. H. Heileman, December, 1906; U. S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply 
Paper 274, p. 145,1911. 

9. Ana River; analysis by W. H. Heileman, July 28, 1905; U. S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 274, 
p. 143, 1911. 

10. Ana River; analysis by Walton Van Winkle, February, 1912. 

All available analyses of the water of Abert Lake, except an early 
and apparently erroneous one by Taylor, agree in percentage com- 
position of dissolved material but show a vide range in concentration, 
which varies markedly with the season, being at least twice as great 
in the autumn as late in winter or in the spring. The annual 
evaporation has been estimated at 5.17 feet 1 for Abert Lake, and the 
relative concentration of the water at different seasons, shown by 
,the analyses, indicates that this is also a maximum figure for the aver- 
age depth of the lake. From these figures the total content of carbon- 
ate and bicarbonate of soda may be roughly estimated as 6,000,000 
tons, of which 4,300,000 is monocarbonate and 1,700,000 bicarbonate of 
soda. In the United States Census of 1900 the content of these salts 
is estimated at 5,000,000 tons. The analyses indicate that soda of 
good grade can be recovered from the water if proper methods are 
employed. The chemical problem is simple, but the problems of 
economy in production and transportation are of such magnitude 
that it is improbable that recovery of soda will prove commercially 
profitable. Lunge 2 states that though Abert Lake would be excel- 
lent for the manufacture of soda if it were more easily accessible, it 

1 Waring, G. A., Geology and water resources of a portion of south-central Oregon: U. S. Geol. Survey 
Water-Supply Paper 220, p. 40, 1908. 

2 Lunge, George, The manufacture of sulphuric acid and alkali, 3d edition, vol. 2, pt. 1, p. 69, 1909, English 
trans. 



CHEWAUCAN BASIN. 121 

is at present too far from a railroad. His criticism applies also to 
Summer Lake, though he reported no information with regard to 
that lake. His statements are based on Chatard's analysis of Abert 
Lake, which does not represent the water at the beginning of an 
evaporation season, and therefore he probably considered the average 
concentration of the lake waters to be greater than it really is. 

Though the proportion of soda in the water of Summer Lake is 
much greater than in that of Abert Lake, there is also much greater 
proportion of the troublesome sulphate. But even this is small in 
comparison with that found in other waters already employed for the 
manufacture of natural soda; the salts in the water of Owens Lake 
in California, for example, contain 14.7 per cent of sulphate. The 
percentage of bicarbonate in Summer Lake is higher than in Abert 
Lake, and consequently greater yield of "summer soda," or trona 
(Na 2 C0 3 .NaHC0 3 .2H 2 0) should be obtained. Recovery will possi- 
bly be simpler and less expensive here than at Abert Lake, but here 
also profitable recovery is problematic. If the annual evaporation 
is estimated to be 3.94 feet, 1 the lake contains almost 6,000,000 tons 
of soda, 4,000,000 tons of which is the monocarbonate and 2,000,000 
tons the bicarbonate. The figure for evaporation may be too low 
because of the great quantity of spring water entering the lake, and 
local conditions at the points of collection may have rendered non- 
representative the differences between concentrations shown by the 
analyses. There is also no means of knowing that the analyses rep- 
resent normal extremes; consequently the figures representing 
the probable content of soda are only rough approximations. At 
Summer Lake, as well as at Abert Lake, careful experimentation 
must precede efficient commercial extraction, and the method finally 
adopted must be such that the product can compete in open market 
with Leblanc, Solvay, and electrolytic soda. 

It is said locally that large springs discharge into both these lakes 
below the water line in addition to the surface flow and rainfall. 
A portion of the water of Summer Lake may come from such sources, 
but the analyses show that these springs discharge not the soda 
water they have been said to yield but water of very slight mineral 
content similar to the surface waters and other springs of the vicinity. 

Ana River, the important feeder of Summer Lake, originates in 
the Ana springs, and its flow is augmented by inflow from other 
springs and by seepage. According to analysis 8 (p. 120) the springs 
at the headwaters contain 220 parts per million of dissolved solids, 
and according to analysis 10 the river water below the springs con- 
tained in winter only 158 parts per million of dissolved solids. 
Alkali carbonates and chlorides predominate in both waters, though 
alkaline earths are present. 

1 Waring, G. A., Geology and water resources of a portion of south-central Oregon: U. S. Geol. Survey 
Water-Supply Paper 220, p. 40, 1908. 



122 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 



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GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SURFACE WATERS. 123 

The water of Chewaucan River, the chief feeder of Abert Lake, 
contains even less mineral matter than that of Ana River, averaging 
85 parts per million. Analyses of other springs and streams in this 
part of Lake County indicate that the above figures are entirely 
normal. Consequently the evidence afforded by the composition of 
the lake waters and the surface and subsurface waters of the region 
indicates that any springs that may exist under the lake beds are fresh 
and not soda springs, and that the lakes are merely concentrates 
formed by evaporation of the present influent waters and are of com- 
paratively recent origin. A conservative estimate of the age of Sum- 
mer and Abert lakes, based on their concentration and area, the com- 
position of influent waters, and the rate of evaporation heretofore 
assumed, is 4,000 years. It is quite possible that the lakes are recent 
pools and that the salt and soda deposits of early Quaternary Che- 
waucan Lake lie buried beneath them. 

GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SURFACE WATERS. 

CONDITIONS INFLUENCING QUALITY. 

The chemical composition of a surface water is influenced by the 
nature of the rocks, the composition and texture of the soils, the 
distance from the ocean, the amount and distribution of precipita- 
tion, and many other conditions of the drainage basin. Only two 
of these influencing conditions, however, determine the general char- 
acter of most of the river waters of Oregon — the precipitation and the 
nature of the rocks. 

The amount and distribution of precipitation chiefly control the 
quantitative relation between the water and the mineral matter it 
holds in solution ; the greater and more uniform the precipitation the 
less and the more uniform will be the mineral content, and conversely, 
the less and more irregular the precipitation the greater and more 
fluctuating will be the mineral content of the waters. 

The nature of the rocks in the drainage basin determines the rela- 
tive proportions of the various mineral substances in solution. 
Igneous rocks, such as granite, diorite, diabase, porphyrite, rhyolite, 
andesite, and basalt, contain large amounts (40 to 75 per cent) of 
silica, and all but pyroxenite, augitite, leucite, and nepheline contain 
feldspar as an essential constituent. 1 Disintegration and decom- 
position of these rocks by atmospheric and aqueous agencies produce 
as soluble products silica and alkalies (sodium and potassium) with 
some alkaline earths (calcium and magnesium) . The basic materials 
are brought into solution chiefly as carbonates, and waters flowing 
over or through such rocks contain carbonate in excess of the amount 

1 Merrill, G. P., Rocks, rock weathering, and soils, pp. 61-98, New York, 1906. 



124 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

necessary to combine with the alkaline earths. Such waters are 
classed by Palmer (see p. 36) as primary alkaline waters. Rocks 
formed in water, including sedimentary rocks, contain relatively large 
amounts of salts of strong acids (sulphates and chlorides) and there- 
fore yield solutions in which the amount of strong acids exceeds that 
necessary to combine with the alkalies. Waters flowing over or 
through such rocks may be called secondary saline waters. An 
exception to this rule is to be noted. Volcanic tuffs and allied rocks 
are laid down practically undecomposed and are classed as igneous 
rocks because of the nature of their decomposition products. Other 
characteristics, such as the acidity or basicity or the nature of the 
preponderant radicles of the rocks, also affect the character of a water; 
a water flowing from dolomite, for example, has a smaller calcium- 
magnesium ratio than one flowing from limestone. 

A water analysis thus affords evidence regarding the nature of 
the predominant rock formations of the drainage basin from which 
the water has flowed. The evidence as to the general character of the 
rocks is fairly exact, but the evidence as to the specific nature of the 
rock, whether basalt or rhyolite, limestone or marl, is conclusive only 
where a rock of pronounced chemical type is almost universally and 
exclusively exposed throughout the drainage basin. The limestone 
of Wallowa River basin illustrates a rock whose nature may be pre- 
dicted from the composition of the regional water. 

Distance from the ocean chiefly affects the chlorine content, and its 
effects are noticeable only in waters of humid regions. The coastal 
waters of the Northwest give marked evidence of the effects of 
"cyclic salt," but the waters of the inland arid regions contain 
sufficient chlorine completely to mask the effects of wind-borne salt 
from the ocean. 

AVERAGE CHEMICAL COMPOSITION. 

The following table gives the average chemical composition, in 
parts per million and in percentage composition of the anhydrous 
residues, of river waters that were regularly examined during this 
investigation. Many single analyses of surface waters that have been 
given in preceding sections are not included in the table. (See also 

ng. i.) 



AVERAGE CHEMICAL COMPOSITION. 



125 



PARTS PER MILLION 



20 40 



60 



300S000&90000£0*00*S000^^ 



V///////////////////////////////////////////////A 



80 100 120 140 160 180 200 220 240 260 

^^^^^^^^^^^™ | Crooked River near Prineville 



'////////////777777, 



B 



" 1 Owyhee River near Owyhee 
| Snake River near Weiser, Idaho 



Y////////A 



i .,,,.:-,,,■■ a 



} Powder River near North Powder 
| Umatilla River near Umatilla 



| Silvies River near Burns 



^^^HBBBBB^^^^^^ } John Day River near Dayville 

_.■_--;_. ■ _\_. Z ± ^ ^//.■/■'////////W////////A \ J° hn Da y River near McDonald 




J Umatilla River near Yoakum 
J Grande Ronde River near Elgin 
J Columbia River near Cascade Locks (1911-1912) 
| Deschutes River near Moody 
| Columbia River near Cascade Locks (1910) 
| Ghewaucan River near Paisley 
} Rogue River near Tolo 
j Umpqua River near Elkton 
j Deschutes River near Bend 
] Wallowa River near Joseph 
} Willamette River near Salem (1910) 
} Willamette River near Salem (1911-1912) 
} Clackamas River near Cazadero 
} McKenzie River near Springfield 

} Sandy River near Brightwood 

j Santiam River near Mehama 

j Siletz River near Siletz 
} Bull Run River near Bull Run 



Dissolved 



Suspended 



Figure 1.— Diagram showing relative content of suspended and dissolved matter in Oregon river 

waters. 



126 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 



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QUALITY OF SURFACE WATEES OF OREGON. 



127 



GEOCHEMICAL CHARACTER. 

The following table gives the geochemical classification of the water 
of Oregon rivers in accordance with the scheme outlined by Palmer. 
(See p. 36.) The data have been arranged in descending order of 
primary alkalinity. In computing these reactions the small numerical 
differences caused mostly by error of analysis have been ehminated 
by assigning them to bicarbonate. The information regarding the 
lithologic character of the drainage basins is necessarily generalized, 
more details having been previously given in the discussions of the 
quality of the various waters. 

Geochemical classification of river waters of Oregon. 



Source of sample (river). 



Pri- 


Second- 


Pri- 


Second- 




mary 
alka- 


ary al- 
kalin- 


mary 
salin- 


ary sa- 
linity. 


Class. 


linity. 


ity. 


ity, 




50.4 


32.9 


16.7 


None. 




30.7 


53.7 


15.6 


None. 




30.3 


54.9 


14.8 


None. 




28.0 


55.2 


16.8 


None. 




27.6 


59*. 8 


12.6 


None. 




27.2 


66.6 


6.2 


None. 




21.8 


56.5 


21.7 


None. 




21.2 


62.6 


16.2 


None. 




20.4 


67.2 


12.4 


None. 




20.3 


61.6 


18.1 


None. 




20.0 


65.0 


15.0 


None. 




19.8 


56.8 


23.4 


None. 




19.3 


54.5 


26.2 


None. 




18.9 


63.5 


• 17.6 


None. 




17.4 


59.8 


22.8 


None. 




15.5 


52.6 


31.9 


None. 




13.7 


76.4 


9.9 


None. 




12.7 


54.7 


32.6 


None. 




12.6 


72.1 


15.3 


None. 




12.1 


65.1 


22.8 


None. 




11.4 


66.0 


22.6 


None. 




11.4 


61.0 


27.6 


None. 




10.6 


66.5 


22.9 


None. 




8.8 


67.1 


24.1 


None. 




7.6 


56.7 


35.7 


None. 




5.6 


66.4 


28.0 


None. 




3.1 


53.7 


43.2 


None. 




L9 


65.0 


33.1 


None. 




1.6 


75.8 


22.6 


None. 




.4 


62.3 


37.3 


None. 




None. 


80.2 


19.3 


0.5 


Ill 


None. 


76.5 


20.0 


3.5 


III 


None. 


65.1 


30.0 


4.9 


III 


None. 


7.3 


85.8 


6.9 


III 



Lithologic character of basin. 



Powder, above North Powder. 
Deschutes, Bend 

Deschutes, Moody 

Crooked, Prineville 

Chewaucan, Paisley 

Dormer und Blitzen, P ranch. . 

Umatilla, Gibbon 

Rogue, Tolo 

Crooked, Paulina 

Umatilla, Yoakum 

Grande Ronde, Elgin 

Powder, North Powder 

Link, Klamath Falls 

Silvies, Burns 

McKenzie, Springfield 

Owyhee, Owyhee 

John Day, Dayville 

Bull Run, Bull Run 

John Day, McDonald 

Clackamas, Cazadero 

Santiam, Mehama 

Umatilla, Umatilla 

Umpqua, Elkton 

Willamette, Salem (1911-12).... 

Malheur, Vale 

Columbia, Mayger 

Siletz, Siletz 

Willamette, Salem (1910) 

Columbia, Cascade Locks (1911- 

12). 
Sandy, Brightwood 

Wallowa, Joseph 

Columbia, Cascade Locks (1910) 
Snake, Weiser, Idaho 



Powder, north of Baker City. 



Igneous and metamorphic rocks. 

Basalts, tuffs, pumiceous sand, 
etc. 
Do. 

Tertiary basalts, tuffs, etc. 

Basalts and other effusives. 

Basalts and more siliceous ef- 
fusives. 

Basalts and other effusives. 

Effusives and metamorphics. 

Basalts and other effusives. 
Do. 
Do. 

Igneous and metamorphic rocks. 

Basalts and other effusives and 
eruptives. 

Basalts and other effusives. 

Basalts and Tertiary sediments. 

Basalts and lake sediments. 

Basalts and other effusives. 

Effusives and morainal deposits. 

Basalts, lake sediments, etc. 

Basalts and other effusives. 
Do. 
Do. 

Basalts and other effusives; 
metamorphics. 

Effusives; Tertiary sediments. 

Basalts and lake sediments. 

Metamorphics, effusives, sedi- 
ments, etc. 

Sediments, some effusives, etc. 

Effusives, Tertiary sediments. 

Metamorphics, effusives, sedi- 
ments, etc. 

Basalts and other effusives; 
glacial debris. 

Sediments, metamorphics, ef- 
fusives. 

Metamorphics, effusives, sedi- 
ments, etc. 

Sediments at headwaters, in- 
trusives, effusives, lake de- 
posits. 

Igneous and metamorphic rocks. 



In Oregon volcanic rocks preponderate in areal extent and most 
of the surface waters are characterized by primary alkalinity. The 
headwaters of the Columbia, the Snake, and the Wallowa are among 
old sedimentary rocks, and the waters of these rivers exhibit slight 
secondary salinity. 



128 QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 

Primary alkalinity is greatest in the water of rivers that traverse 
the Columbia River basalt, is small in the waters of the north coastal 
and the valley strips, and is lacking in the waters from the older 
sedimentary formations. 

The analysis of the water of Powder River above North Powder 
is of doubtful value, and it is questionable whether seepage from 
irrigated land between Baker and the point of collection would alter 
the composition of the water to the extent shown by the reported 
analyses. The valley contains none except igneous rocks, and there 
is no good reason for expecting that change like that indicated would 
occur. 

The water of Snake River at Weiser is characterized by secondary 
salinity because of drainage from old sediments in the upper basin 
of the river. Where the stream joins the Columbia, at Burbank, 
Wash., the secondary saline character of its water is less pronounced, 1 
however, on account of the influence of the lava formations in its 
middle and lower valleys. 

DENUDATION. 

The amount of dissolved material in a river water and the rate 
of discharge of the river measure the rate of chemical erosion by 
that river. The amount of suspended material, however, is not 
truly proportional to the rate of mechanical corrasion, as corrasion 
is also caused by rock fragments that are too heavy to be carried in 
suspension but are light enough to be rolled downstream along the 
bed of the river. Such material forms an appreciable part of the 
total material transported, and it exerts a real but unmeasured 
corrasive effect on the stream bed. It was not possible to determine 
the amount of such material in the streams studied, and consequently 
the suspended matter is necessarily considered to represent the total 
amount of corrasive transported material. Values representing the 
amount of mechanical and chemical denudation of the drainage basin 
thus obtained, though they are not exact, are probably not far from 
the correct values and are comparable with similarly derived 
estimates. 

In computing the following table it has been assumed that denuda- 
tion removes uniformly over the whole drainage basin material hav- 
ing the uniform specific gravity of 2.64. The latter value is very 
nearly the average density of the rock mass. The assumption that 
denudation is uniform over the entire basin is conventional, as the 
erosive action is, of course, confined largely to the main channel and 
the smaller influent channels of the stream itself, and the rate of 
denudation is therefore variable throughout the basin. The results 
are valuable because they indicate differences in rate of erosion and 

i Van Winkle, Walton, The quality of the surface waters of Washington: U. S. Geol. Survey Water- 
Supply Taper 339, p. 101, 1914. 



DENUDATION. 



129 



give much information concerning the time during which the streams 
have been eroding their channels. Because of the probability that 
there were larger amounts of atmospheric carbon dioxide in former 
ages, that tremendous changes in rainfall have occurred at different 
times in the earth's history, and that many other conditions influence 
the rate of denudation in relation to time, no attempt is made to 
discuss this problem. 

The tons per day of dissolved and suspended matter carried past 
each sampling station has been computed for each 10-day period 
represented by the composite samples of waters, and these figures 
have been recorded in the tables of analyses. The average annual 
loads of suspended and dissolved matter of each stream have been 
computed by multiplying the averages of the 10-day estimates by 
365, and the denudation in tons per square mile per annum has been 
computed by dividing those figures by the areas of the respective 
basins. The insignificant numerical differences between the esti- 
mates of denudation based on the analyses of the water of Columbia 
River at Cascade Locks in 1910 and those previously published 1 
are caused by difference in the manner of estimating denudation 
during the periods not covered by analyses. 

Denudation by rivers in Oregon. 



Drainage basin. 



Area in 
square 
miles.a 



Material removed from drainage basin. 



Tons per annum. 



Dissolved, 



Sus- 
pended. 



Tons per 
square mile 
per annum. 



Millionths 

of an inch 

of rock 

material 

per annum. 



Dis- 
solv- 
ed. 



Sus- 
pend- 
ed. 



Dis- 
solv- 
ed. 



Sus- 
pend- 
ed. 



Years required to 
remove 1 inch. 



Dis- 
solved. 


Sus- 
pended. 


880 
4,800 
1,100 


28, 000 

4,300 

11,000 


2,100 
2,700 
6,500 


3,300 
6,600 
4,000 


3,400 
2,700 
1,700 


99, 000 
4,800 
3,800 


2,800 

4,100 

920 

11,000 


970 

2,000 
6,800 
5,400 


2,800 

1,500 

680 

3,400 


7,200 
6,000 
1,900 
4,700 


2,700 

4,300 

1,400 

920 


5,100 

7,700 

3,000 

270, 000 


1,300 


2,000 



Total. 



850 
2,300 
1,000 



1,300 
1,900 
2,500 

3,300 
1,700 
1,200 

730 
1,300 

810 
3,600 

2,000 

1,200 

500 

2,000 

1,800 

2,800 

970 

920 

770 



Bull Run, Bull Run .. 
Chewaucan, Paisley... 
Clackamas, Cazadero.. 
Columbia, Cascade 
Locks: 

1910 

1911-12 

Crooked, Prineville 

Deschutes: 

Bend 

Moody 

Grande Ronde, Elgin. 
John Day: 

Dayville 

McDonald 

McKenzie, Springfield. 

Owyhee, Owyhee 

Powder, North 

Powder 

Rogue, Tolo 

Siletz, Siletz 

Snake ; Weiser, Idaho. 
Umatilla: 

Yoakum 

Umatilla 

Umpqua, Elkton 

Wallowa, Joseph 

Willamette, Salem 

(1911-12) 



96 

272 
685 



239, 600 

239, 600 

1,990 

1,530 
9,180 
1,350 

1,000 

7,800 

960 

11, 100 

826 

2,020 

220 

74,900 

1,200 
2,130 

3,680 

47 

7,520 



21, 000 

10, 980 

120, 300 



21,638,000 

17,000,000 

58, 400 

85, 600 
642, 900 
154,100 

68,000 
365, 000 
199, 600 
195, 400 

56, 400 

251, 800 

62, 100 

4,208,000 

85, 500 

94, 300 

488, 500 

9,790 

1,126,000 



650 
12, 200 
11, 750 



14,095,600 

7,000,000 

96, 600 

2,850 

370, 400 

68,000 

198,000 

759, 500 

26, 800 

397, 800 

22, 100 

65, 350 

22, 400 

3,042,000 

44, 900 

53, 000 

217, 400 

33.5 



219 

40 

176 



90.3 
71.0 
29 

56 

70 

114 

68 

47 

208 . 

18 

68 
125 

282 
56 

71 

44 
133 
208 



58.8 
29.2 
49 

1.9 
40 
50 

198 

97 
28 
36 

27 

32 

102 

41 

37 
25 
59 



737,000 150 



1,100 
210 
920 



470 
370 
150 

290 
360 
600 

360 

240 

1,100 

92 

360 

650 

1,500 

290 

370 

230 

690 

1,100 

780 



35 
230 



310 
150 
250 

10 
210 
260 

1,000 
510 
150 
190 

140 
170 
530 
210 

200 
130 
330 
3.7 

510 



a Computed from best available maps, many of which are. however, incomplete. 

1 Van Winkle, Walton, The quality of the surface waters of Washington: U. S. Geol. Survey Water- 
Supply Paper 339, p. 98, 1914. 

47195°— wsp 363—14 9 



130 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON 



INDUSTRIAL VALUE. 



The following table shows the average industrial value of the river 
waters that were studied in connection with this investigation. The 
figures in the table have been computed from those showing the 
average composition of the waters (p. 126) by means of the formulas 
given on pages 34 to 36. The amounts of reagents required to 
soften the waters are for the most part theoretical, as most of the 
waters contain so little scale-forming matter that they do not need 
treatment. The statements regarding the corrosive tendencies of 
the waters are based only on determinations of the solid constituents, 
and consequently allowance should be made for corrosion that might 
be caused by dissolved gases. For the same reason allowance should 
be made for free carbon dioxide, which could not be determined, in 
adjusting lime treatment. 

Average industrial value of Oregon river waters. 



River. 


Near — 


Soap 
con- 
sumed 
(pounds 
per 
1,000 
gal- 
lons). 


Softening re- 
agents required 

(pounds per 
1,000 gallons). 


Corro- 
sive 

pow- 
er, c 


Scale- 
forming 
constit- 
uents 
(pounds 


Hard- 
ness of 


Color 
(parts 




Lime. a 


Soda 
ash. b 


per 
1,000 
gal- 
lons). 


scale. 


per 

mil- 
lion). 


Bull Run 


Bull Run 


20.0 
38.1 
30.9 
69.0 

121.4 
30.4 
43.0 
48.0 

111.3 
92.4 
26.6 

100 
95.3 
36.1 
28.0 
29.4 
26.3 
84.6 

133 
95.8 
4S.5 
40.0 
51.0 
27.5 


d0. 06 

d .23 

d.14 

d.37 

1.11 

d.18 

d .30 

d .29 

.85 

.65 

d.12 

.73 

.72 

d .20 

d 10 

d .13 

d .10 

.60 

.78 

.64 

d .31 

d .20 

d .22 

d .11 


0.00 
.00 
.00 

d .02 
..00 
.00 
.00 
.00 
.00 
.00 

d.04 
.00 
.00 
.00 

d.04 
.00 

d.01 
.00 
.10 
.00 
.00 
.00 

d .02 
.00 


N.C... 
N.C... 
(?)■--- 
(?)---- 
N.C... 
N.C... 
N.C... 
N.C... 
N.C... 
N.C... 
N.C... 
N.C... 
N.C... 
N.C... 
(?)...- 
N.C... 


0.15 
.47 
.29 
.57 

1.08 
.35 
.47 
.54 
.97 
.83 
.24 
.94 
.35 
.39 
.29 
.31 
.20 


Hard.... 
...do 

Medium. 
...do 
...do 

Hard.... 
...do 
...do 

Medium. 

Hard.... 
...do 

Medium. 

Hard.... 

( 9 ) 

Hard.... 
...do 
Medium. 


3 


Chewaucan 


Paisley 


19 


Clackamas 


Cazadero 


4 


Columbia 


Cascade Locks 


11 


Crooked 


Prineville 


20 


Deschutes... 


Bend 


3 


Do . 


Moody 


12 


Grande Ronde 


Elgin 


26 


John Day 


Davville 


20 


Do 


McDonald 


27 


McKenzie 


Springfield 


2 


Owvhee.. . .. 


wyhee 


22 


Powder. . 


North Powder 


22 


Rogue . . 


Tolo 


12 


Bandy 


Brightwood 


5 


Santiam 


Mehama 


2 


Siletz 


Siletz 


3 


Siivies 


Burns 


14 


Snake. 


Weiser, Idaho 


N.C... 
N.C... 
N.C... 
N.C... 
N.C... 
N.C... 


1.93 
1.04 
. 53 
.50 
.46 
.28 


Soft 

Medium. 

Hard.... 

Medium. 

Soft 

Hard.... 


10 


Umatilla 


Umatilla 


13 


Do 


Yoakum 


16 


Umpqua . 


Elkton 


14 


Wallowa 


Joseph 


1 


Willamette... 


Salem 


13 









a 90 per cent CaO. 

b 95 per cent Na-jC0 3 . 

cN.C, noncorrosive: ?, doubtful whether mineral constituents would cause corrosion. 

d Figure only of theoretical value; water does not require treatment. 

The river waters of Oregon are in general exceptionally soft and 
free from harmful mineral constituents, being comparable in these 
respects with the best surface waters of New England, northern New 
York, and northern Wisconsin, enormous quantities of which are 
used in all kinds of manufacturing. Few of them are so highly col- 
ored as many waters used in the East without trouble in paper mills, 



INDUSTRIAL VALUE. 131 

bleacheries, and dye works. The river waters of western Oregon are 
soft, do not require treatment for use in boilers, and would not cause 
corrosion under most conditions of use. Those of eastern Oregon are 
not uniform in character; the waters of Chewaucan, Deschutes, Grande 
Ronde, and Wallowa rivers are soft, but those of Crooked, John Day, 
Owyhee, Powder, Silvies, Snake, and Umatilla rivers are hard and 
need softening for best results in boiler practice. 

The slight mineralization and the small amount of incrustants in 
waters flowing through the arid portions of the State are surprising. 
In these respects they differ greatly from the desert waters of Cali- 
fornia. The insoluble character of the Columbia River basalt, com- 
pared with the relatively soluble character of the rocks of the Diablo, 
Gabilan, Santa Ynez, and other mountains of California, is doubtless 
the chief cause of this difference, in addition to which the colder waters 
of the Oregon plateau do not dissolve rock material so rapidly as the 
warmer waters of California. 

VALUE FOR IRRIGATION. 

All the river waters of the State that were examined are excellent 
for irrigation and could be used almost indefinitely without causing 
injurious accumulation of alkali because of the dissolved matter in 
them. 

The following table shows the relative suitability of the lake waters 
for irrigation. Most of these lakes are in regions where water for 
irrigation is highly prized, but one, Crater Lake, has been included 
merely to indicate the difference in irrigation value between the lake 
waters of the arid region and a water similar to those flowing in 
Oregon rivers. Crump Lake, of the Warner chain, is the only one 
containing good water for irrigation, though Hart Lake contains 
water only slightly poorer. The waters of Silver Lake (in Lake 
County), Lower Klamath Lake, and Flagstaff Lake are of fairly 
good quality; those of Goose Lake, Malheur Lake, and Pelican Lake 
are poor; and those of Abert, Bluejoint, Harney, Silver (in Harney 
County), and Summer lakes are unfit for irrigation. All. the lake 
waters are characterized by the presence of black alkali or sodium 
carbonate. 



132 



QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS OF OREGON. 
Value of some lake waters of Oregon for irrigation. 



Lake. 


Basin. 


County. 


Alkali 
coeffi- 
cient. 


Type of alkali. 


Classifi- 
cation. 


Abert 


Warner 


Lake 


Inches. 
0.08 
.55 
130 

41 

7 
2 

.25 
15 
9 

6 

8 

5.5 
1.6 
.71 
12 
.12 


Carbonate 

do.. 


Bad 


Bluejoint 


do 


Do 


Crater 


Crater Lake 

Warner 


Crater Lake Na- 
tional Park. 
Lake 


do.. 


Good. 


Crump 


do.. 


Do. 


Flagstaff 


do 


do 


do.. 


Fair. 


Goose 


San Francisco Bay. 


do 


do.. 


Poor. 


Harney 


Warner 


Harney 


do.. 


Bad 


Hart 


Lake 


do.. 


Fair. 


Lower Klamath 


Klamath Rivor 

do 


Klamath, T. 41 S., 

R.9E. 
Siskivou (Cal.), T. 

48 N., R.2E. 
Siskiyou (Cal.), T. 

47N.,R.3 E. 
Harney 


do 


Do. 


Do 


do 


Do. 


Do 


do 


do 

do 


Do. 


Malheur 


Harney 


Poor. 


Pelican 


Warner 


Lake 


do 


Do. 


Silver 


narney 


Harney 


do 


Bad. 


Do 


Chewaucan 


Lake 

do 


do 


Fair. 


Summer 


do 


Bad. 













SUMMARY. 

The river waters of Oregon are low in mineral content and are very 
good for general industrial use and for irrigation. With one or two 
exceptions they carry small amounts of suspended matter that can 
be readily removed. The waters of John Day and Sandy rivers, 
however, are characterized by very finely comminuted suspended 
matter, the removal of which would be difficult and would probably 
necessitate filtration through rapid filters. Slow sand filtration can be 
used with many of the river waters, but coagulation and rapid filtra- 
tion is better suited to some of them. 

Erosion progresses most rapidly in the upper basin of John Day 
River, where it is chiefly by corrasion, somewhat less rapidly in the 
Coast Range, still less in the Cascades, and most slowly in the central 
part of the State. 

The lakes of central Oregon are large and the waters of some of 
them are economically important. Detailed studies should be made 
of the deposits and brines in order to ascertain the location, nature, 
extent, and commercial value of the residues. 



INDEX. 



A. Page. 

Abert Lake, description of 118 

water of 119-120 

analyses of 119-120 

solids carried by 119 

value of, for irrigation 132 

Acknowledgments to those aiding 9 

Agriculture, development of 17 

Alkalies, effect of, in boiler water 21 

Alkali Lake Basin, description of 114-115 

Alkalinity, determination of 35 

Aluminum sulphate, coagulation by 27 

Analysis, methods of 30-34 

results of, interpretation of 34-38 

See also particular stream basins. 

Ana River, water of 120, 121 

water of, analyses of 120, 121 

solids carried by 120, 121 

Arnold, S. N., work of 75 

B. 
Baker City. See Powder River near Baker 
City. 

Barium carbonate, softening by 29 

Bicarbonates, effect of, in boiler water 21 

Bleaching, water for, quality of 24 

Bluejoint Lake, water of 113, 114 

water of, analysis of 113 

solids carried by 113 

value of, for irrigation 132 

Boiler compounds 29 

Boswell,A. M., work of 63 

Breitenbush Hot Springs, description of 93, 95 

water of, analyses of 95 

solids carried by 95 

Breweries, water for, quality of 22-23 

Brightwood. See Sandy River near Bright- 
wood. 

Bull Run River, basin of 85 

basin of, denudation in 86, 129 

water of 85-87 

Bull Run River near Bull Run, water of, an- 
alyses of 86, 126 

water of, color of 86, 126 

geochemical classification of 127 

industrial value of ; 130 

solids carried by 86, 126 

Burns. See Silvies River near Burns. 

C. 

Calcium hypochlorite, sterilization by 28 

Calcium, scale due to 21 

Carbonates, scale due to 21 

Carbon dioxide, source and effect of 18 

Cascade Locks. See Columbia River at Cas- 
cade Locks. 

Cascade Range, geology of 14 



Caulfield, Charles, work of 109 

Cazadero. See Clackamas River at Cazadero. 

Chewaucan Basin, description of 117-119 

geology of 117-118 

water of. 119-123 

analyses of 119-120 

solids carried by 119-120 

Chewaucan River, basin of, denudation in. . 123, 129 
Chewaucan River near Paisley, water of. . . 122-123 

water of, analyses of 122, 126 

color of 122, 126 

geochemical classification of 127 

industrial value of 130 

solids carried by 122, 126 

Chloride of lime, sterilization by 28 

Chlorine, occurrence of, in natural waters. . . 18, 124 

Christmas Lake Basin, description of 115-116 

water of 116-117 

analyses of 117 

solids carried by 117 

Clackamas River, basin of 95 

denudation in 96, 129 

Clackamas River at Cazadero, water of 96-97 

v ater of, analyses of 96, 126 

color of 96, 126 

geochemical classification of 127 

industrial value of 130 

solids carried by 96, 126 

Classification of boiler water 30 

Classification of water, methods of 34-38 

Climate, description of 16 

Coagulation, use of, in filtration 26-27 

Coast Range, description of 10 

geology of 14 

Columbia River basalt, description of 14 

Columbia River, basin of 51-52 

basin of, denudation in 98, 100, 101, 129 

Columbia River at Cascade Locks, descrip- , 

tion of 97 

water of 97-102 

analyses of 99-101, 126 

color of 99-101,126 

geochemical classification of 127 

industrial value of 130 

solids carried by 99-101, 126 

Columbia River at Mayger, water of 102 

water of, analyses of 102 

geochemical classification of 127 

solids carried by 102 

Copper sulphate, sterilization by 28 

Corrosion, causa and prevention of 19-20 

Crater Lake, description of 42 

water of 42-43 

analysis of 43 

solids carried by 43 

value of, for irrigation. 132 

133 



134 



INDEX. 



Page. 

Crooked River, basin of 78-79 

basin of, denudat ion in 80, 129 

Crooked River near Paulina, water of, analy- 
sis of 81 

water of, geochemical classification of 127 

solids carried by 81 

Crooked River near Prineville, water of, 

analyses of 80, 126 

water of, color of 80, 126 

geochemical classification of 127 

solids carried by SO, 126 

industrial value of 130 

Crump Lake, water of 113, 114 

water of, analyses of 113 

solids carried by 113 

value of, for irrigation 132 

D. 

Dayville. See John Day River at Dayville. 

Denudation, character and amount of 128-129 

Deschutes River, basin of 74-75 

basin of, denudation in 76-77, 129 

water of 75-78 

Deschutes River at Bend, water of, analy- 
ses of 76, 126 

water of, color of 76, 126 

geochemical classification of 127 

industrial value of 130 

solids carried by 76, 126 

Deschutes River at Moody, water of, analy- 
ses of 76-77, 126 

water of, color of 76-77, 126 

geochemical classification of 127 

industrial value of 130 

solids carried by 76-77, 126 

Dinsmore, S. C, work of 95 

Disinfection. See Sterilization. 

Dissolved solids, amount of 129 

Dissolved solids, chart showing 125 

Dodd, Dallas, work of 113 

Doherty, John, work of 66 

Donncr und Blitzen River, basin of 107 

Donner und Blitzen River, water of, analy- 
ses of 107 

water of, geochemical classification of 127 

solids carried by 107 

Drainage, description of 11-13 

Dumble, E. T., work of *. 119 

Dyeing works, water for, quality of 24 

E. 

Economic features, description of 16-18 

Elgin. See Grande Konde Kiver at Elgin. 
Elkton. See Umpqua River near Elkton. 

F. 

Farrar, F. H., work of 44 

Filters, types of 25 

Filtration, methods of 25-28 

Finkbincr, N. M., work of S, 4:5.95 

Fisk,M. B., work of 59 

Flagstaff Lake, water of 113.114 

analysis of 113 

solids carried by 113 

value of. for irrigation 132 

Foaming, causes of 22 



Page. 
Fort Klamath, Wood River near. See Wood 

River. 
Fort Rock, shore lines of Quaternary Lake 

near 40 (PI. II). 116 

G. 

Geochemical character of river waters of 

Oregon 127-128 

Geochemical interpretation of water analyses. 36-38 

Geology, description of 13-15, 

44. 48, 52, 55, 57. 59, 61,65, 66, 71, 74, 
79, 87-88, 103, 104, 105, 115. 117-118 
See also particular stream basins. 
Gibbon. See Umatilla River near Gibbon. 

Goose Lake, description of 38 

water of 38-39 

analysis of 39 

solids carried by 39 

vahie of, for irrigation 132 

Graham, John, work of 61 

Grande Ronde River, basin of 61 

basin of, denudation in 62, 129 

Grande Ronde River at Elgin, water of 61-63 

water of, analyses of 62, 126 

color of 62,126 

geochemical classification of 127 

industrial value of 130 

solids carried by 63, 126 

Great Basin, geologic history of 103-104 

H. 

Harmon, W. O., work of 117 

Harney Basin, descript ion of 104-105 

water of 105-106 

analyses of 106 

Harney Lake, water of 106 

water of, analyses of 106 

solids carried by 106 

value of, for irrigation 132 

Hart Lake, water of 113,114 

water of, analyses of 113 

solids carried by 113 

value of , for irrigation 132 

Hasbrouck, Samuel, work of 91 

Heileman, W. H., work of 40, 117 

Hendricks, Mrs. N. M., work of 91 

Holder, C. A., work of 67 

Hydrography, description of 11-13 

I. 
Industrial interpretation of water analyses, 

formulas for 34-36 

Industrial value of Oregon river waters. . . . 130-131 

Industries, development of 17 

Industries, water for 22-25 

See particular industries. 

Irrigation, value of lake waters for 131, 132 

Irrigation waters, classification of 36, 132 

Irvine, J. W., work of 93 

Isochlors, definit ion and use of 18 

J. 

John Day River, basin of 71 

basin of, denudation in 72-73, 129 

John Day River at McDonald, water of, an- 
alyses of 72-73,126 



INDEX. 



135 



Page. 
John Day River at McDonald, water of, 

color of 72-73, 126 

geochemical classification of 126, 127 

industrial value of 130 

solids carried by 72-73, 126 

John Day River near Dayville, water of, 

analyses of 72, 126 

water of, color of 72, 126 

geochemical classification of 127 

industrial value of 130 

solids carried by 72, 126 

Joseph. See Wallowa River near Joseph. 
Jourdan, Thomas, work of 109 

K. 

Kennta, John, work of 49 

Klamath basin, water of, analyses of 41 

water of, solids carried by 41 

Klamath Falls. See Link River near Klam- 
ath Falls. 

Klamath Mountains, description of 10-11 

geology of 14 

Klamath River, basin of 39-40 

Kniseley, A. L., work of 41 

L. 

Lakes, description of 11-12 

See also particular lakes. 

Laundries, water for, quality of 9, 24 

Lime, softening by 29-30, 35-36 

Link River near Klamath Falls, water of 40-41 

water of, analyses of 40 

geochemical classification of 127 

solids carried by 40 

Lost River, water of, analysis of 41 

Lower Klamath Lake, water of, analysis of. . . 41 

water of, value of, for irrigation .- 132 

Lumbering, development of 17 

M. 

McBeth, S. G., work of 41 

McConnell, C. B., work of 109 

McDonald. See John Day River at Mc- 
Donald. 

McDonald, W. G., work of 71 

Mclntyre, Glenn, work of 82 

Mclntyre, J. T.,workof 82 

McKenzie River, basin of 91 

basin of, denudation in 92, 129 

McKenzie River near Springfield, water of... 91-92 

water of, analyses of 92, 126 

color of 92,126 

geochemical classification of 127 

industrial value of 130 

solids carried by 92, 126 

MacRae, K. F., work of 71 

Magnesium, scale due to 21 

Martin, John, work of 63 

Malheur Lake, water of 106 

water of, analysis of 106 

solids carried by 106 

value of, for irrigation 132 

Malheur River, basin of 57 

Malheur River near Vale, water of 57-58 

water of, analyses of 57-58 

geochemical classification of 127 

solids carried by 57-58 



Page. 

Manufacturing, development of 17 

Mayger. See Columbia River at Mayger. 

Means, T. H., work of 57 

Meat packing, water for 25 

Mecklem, M., work of 43 

Mehama. See Santiam River at Mehama. 

Mount Hood, description of 10 

Murray, William, work of 71 

N. 

Natural features, description of 10-16 

Natural waters, constituents of 18 

North Powder. See Powder River near 
North Powder. 

O. 

Olympic Mountains, description of 10 

Oregon, cooperation of 7 

natural features of 10-16 

Owyhee River, basin of 55 

basin of, denudation in 56, 129 

Owyhee River near Owyhee, water of 55-56 

water of, analyses of 56, 126 

color of 56, 126 

geochemical classification of 127 

industrial value of 130 

solids carried by 56, 126 

Ozone, sterilization by 28-29 



Paisley. See Chewaucan River near Paisley. 

Paper mills, water for, quality of 23-24 

Paulina. See Crooked River near Paulina. 
Pelican Bay, spring in, analysis of water of. . . 41 

spring in, plate showing 40 

Pelican Lake, water of 113 

water of, analysis of 113 

solids carried by 113 

value of, for irrigation 132 

Permutite, softening by 29 

Pilkington, B., work of 102 

Population, statistics of 16 

Powder River, basin of 58 

basin of, denudation in 60, 129 

Powder River near Baker City, water of 59 

water of, analysis of 59 

geochemical classification of 127 

solids carried by. 59 

Powder River near North Powder, water of. . 59-61 

water of, analyses of 60, 126 

geochemical classification of 127 

industrial value of 130 

solids carried by 60, 126 

Precipitation. See Rainfall. 

Priming, causes of 22 

Prineville. See Crooked River near Prine- 
ville. 

Purification of water 25-30 

See also Filtration; Softening; Steriliza- 
tion. 

R. 

Rainfall, amount of 16, 38, 44, 46, 48, 52, 53,59, 

61, 66, 71, 74, 79, 82, 85, 88, 91, 105, 109 

Rapid sand filtration, description of 26 

Reeves, A. J., work of 53 



136 



INDEX. 



Page. 
Rocks. See Geology. 

Rogue River, basin of 43 

basin of, denudation in 45, 129 

Rogue River near Tolo, water of, analyses 

of 44-45, 126 

water of, color of 45, 126 

geochemical classification of 127 

industrial value of 130 

solids carried by 45, 126 

S. 

Salem. See Willamette River at Salem. 

Sampling stations, list of 7 

location of 7 (P1.I) 

Sand filtration, description of 25-27 

Sandy River, basin of 82 

water of 82-85 

Sandy River near Brightwood, water of, anal- 
yses of 83-84, 126 

water of, color of 83-84, 126 

geochemical classification of 127 

industrial value of 130 

solids carried by 83-84, 126 

San Francisco Bay, basin of 38-39 

Santiam River, basin of 9 > 

Santiam River at Mehama, water of 93,94 

water of, analyses of 94, 126 

color of 94, 126 

geochemical classification of 127 

industrial value of 130 

solids carried by 94, 126 

Savage, Herbert, work of 88 

Scale, formation of 20-22 

Seely, A. B., work of 88 

Siletz River, basin of 48 

basin of, denudat ion in 50, 129 

Siletz River near Siletz, water of 49-50 

water of, analyses of 50, 126 

color of 50, 126 

geochemical classification of 127 

industrial value of 130 

solids carried by 50 

Silica, scale due to 21 

Silver Lake, water of 105, 106, 117 

water of, analysis of 106, 117 

solids carried by 106, 117 

value of, for irrigation 132 

Silvies River, basin of 107 

Silvies River near Burns, water of 108-109 

water of, analysis of 108, 126 

color of 108, 126 

geochemical classification of 127 

industrial value of 130 

solids carried by 108, 126 

Slow sand filtration, description of 25-26 

Snake River, basin of 52-53 

basin of, denudation in 54,129 

water power in 53 

Snake River near Weiser, Idaho, water of. . . 53-54 

water of, analyses of 54, 126 

color of 54, 126 

geochemical classification of 127 

industrial value of 130 

solids carried by 54 

Soap, loss of, in hard water 24, 35 



Page. 

Softening of water, processes of 29-30 

Soils, character of 15 

Specific gravity, determination of 32 

Stanburrough, C. A. , work of 75 

Stearns, S. S. , work of 79 

Steiger, George, work of 106 

Sterilization, processes of 28-29 

Sulphates, scale due to 22 

Summer Lake, description of 118-119 

water of 119-121 

analysis of 119-120 

solids carried by 119-120 

value of, for irrigation 132 

Surface waters, general characteristics of. . . 123-132 

Suspended solids, chart showing 125 

Swamps, description of 13 

Sweet, A. T., work of 41 

T. 

Tanning, water for 25 

Taylor, Alfred, work of 109 

Temperature, data on 16 

Tolo. See Rogue River near Tolo. 

Tompkins, V. W., work of 97 

Topography, description of 10-11 

Tygh Valley dam site. See White River at 
Tygh Valley dam site. 

U. 

Ultra-violet rays, sterilization by 29 

Umatilla River, basin of g 66 

basin of, denudation in 69-70, 129 

water of 66-70 

Umatilla River near Gibbon, water of, analy- 
ses of 68 

water of, color of 68 

geochemical classificat ion of 127 

solids carried by 68 

Umatilla River near Umatilla, water of, 

analyses of 69-70, 126 

water of, color of 69-70, 126 

geochemical classification of 127 

industrial value of 130 

solids carried by 69-70, 126 

Umatilla River near Yoakum, water of, 

analyses of 68-69, 126 

water of, color of 68-69, 126 

geochemical classification of 127 

industrial value of 130 

solids carried by 68-69, 126 

Umpqua River, basin of 46 

basin of, denudat ion in 47, 129 

Umpqua River near Elkton, water of, 

analyses of 46-48, 126 

water of, color of 47, 126 

geochemical classification of 127 

industrial value of 130 

solids carried by 47, 126 

Uses of water 19-25 

See also particular uses. 

V. 

Vale. See Malheur River near Vale. 

Von Eschen, F., work of 65,119 



INDEX. 



137 



W. Page. 

Wallowa River, basin of 63 

basin of, denudation in 64, 129 

Wallowa River near Joseph, water of 63-66 

water of, analyses of 64, 126 

color of - 64, 126 

geochemical classification of 127 

industrial value of 130 

solids carried by 64 

Warner Lake Basin, description of 109-110 

geology of 110-112 

salt deposits in 112-113 

water of 113 

analyses of 113 

solids carried by 113 

Water, analyses of, error from 9 

analyses of, methods of making 30-34 

samples of, systematic collection of 7-8 

sterilization of 28-29 

Water, boiler, qualifications of 9, 19 

Water, domestic , qualifications of 9, 19 

Water, industrial, qualifications of 9, 22-25 

Watson, Gilder, work of 55 



Page. 
Weiser, Idaho. See Snake River near Weiser, 

Idaho. 
Whipple, G. C, on soap-consuming power of 

water 24 

White River, basin of 81 

White River at Tygh Valley dam site, water 

of, analysis of 81 

water of, solids carried by 81 

Willamette River, basin of 87 

basin of, denudation in 90, 129 

Willamette River at Salem, water of 88-91 

water of, analyses of 89-90, 126 

color of 89-90, 126 

geochemical classification of 127 

industrial value of 130 

solids carried by. 89-90, 126 

Wood River near Fort Klamath, water of, 

analysis of 41 

Wool scouring, water for 24 

Y. 

Yoakum. See Umatilla River near Yoakum. 



O 






LBJ 



a"!5 



x 






10 j 



